


Journey Through Hell

by spotty8ee



Series: Not So Black And White Universe [4]
Category: 101 Dalmatian Street (Cartoon)
Genre: A little out of character Deepak., Character Death In Dream, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Fluff, Father-Son Relationship, Half-Siblings, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Mild Blood, Mild Gore, Mother-Son Relationship, Platonic Relationships, Step-parents, Step-siblings, The boy's overworked though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-11-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:40:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25761511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spotty8ee/pseuds/spotty8ee
Summary: Ever since the De Vil Incident something hasn't sat right.As the whole family recovers, mentally, from the event, Dante seems to be having more trouble than most. Now that things are calm once more Dylan can finally ask him.What happened back there?
Relationships: Delilah/Doug (101 Dalmatians)
Series: Not So Black And White Universe [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1868851
Comments: 31
Kudos: 49





	1. Load

**Author's Note:**

> I've been working on this for a while! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Hey Guys! This is an announcement to tell you all I have a Tumblr specifically for this AU and for 101 Dalmatian St! If you have any questions feel free to ask! I'm actually excited to try and answer them! OR if you just wanna talk puppies, ideas or anything at all you can find me there! I'll be posting stuff for the AU/ Fanfiction there, along with other Dalmatian stuff!
> 
> Also I opened commissions (FOR DRAWINGS) on my tumblr. Take a look if you'd like!
> 
> https://notsoblackandwhite101.tumblr.com/

Buzz! Whirl! CRUNCH!

Puppy after screaming puppy was tossed onto a conveyor belt before being sucked into the horrible machine. It would groan with each load, painful wet noises emanating from deep within its walls.

They're dead! They're Dead! THEY’RE DEAD!

Dante watched as they were tossed, one by one, into the whirling blades of death. Skinned fur came out the far side.

Likely the bloody remains dumped to the uncaring sea below.

Were they still alive when the salt water hit their wounds? Did they flounder?

Dante figured he’d find out soon enough. 

He watched Dawkins, DJ, Da Vinci, and many, many more pile into the machine. When would it be enough?! When would she just make her coat?!

Dante sobbed in his kennel. He would never hear DJ perform again. Da Vinci would never paint. Dawkins wouldn’t invent anything new or amazing!

They were gone.

The machine leaked red liquid. It smelt sour and coppery.

The devil woman grabbed his crate.

It was time.

She ripped the door open and grabbed him before he could react. He was in the air, held by the scruff, legs kicking. He supposed he should be gushing about the end of the world. How he was finally right. 

Instead, he wailed like a baby.

He was lifted over to the machine, and could see the red, sharp, dancing blades inside. However, the devil holding him stalled before he was put in. “What the hell is this!? This isn’t a Dalmatian! HUNTER!” 

Hunter was in his own cage, turned away from the sight, hands held over his ears.

“That boy never could do anything right!” she growled, looking Dante over. “No, No, NO! This is all wrong! It’ll throw off the coat!” Yet after a moment she paused in thought. “Then again, it may be big enough for a muff….” She flicked his left ear in disdain. “But this dye!  **UGH** ! It’s ruined.” Dante whined as she shook him violently. “Poor breeding, this is what it gets you!”

She marched over to a window on the ship. “This is just dead weight!”

“Dante!” one puppy cried as he was carried away.

“Brother, please!” Deepak screamed, little paws on the bars of his cage.

“Help me, Dante!” Dizzy sobbed. Dee Dee was already gone. “I don’t wanna be a coat!”

Dorothy whimpered in her cage at the bottom.

Dante struggled, but the devil’s nails dug into his skin. Dante searched wildly for help, trying to grab the woman or get out of her hold. 

His eyes fell on mom and dad. Dad was turned away, shoulders hunched and shaking. He couldn’t look. He couldn’t stand to see anymore. Mom however caught his gaze. The look in her eyes… It was burning. Angry and hungry for revenge. Yet when she locked sights with Dante, she turned away too, heart broken.

There was nothing his parents could do. They were just as helpless as he was.

The devil opened the port window and held him higher.

“Say hello to your brothers and sister for me!” She laughed darkly. Dante shrunk before her.

Then he was thrown out.

Darkness. Just a tumbling spiral of darkness. The rumble of the ocean and cold, cold air.

Then he hit the water.

It was choppy and freezing! The turning from the boat made him confused. Where was the surface?! His legs kicked but the ocean refused to give mercy. More tossing and crashing. Air was running out. By some miracle, he found the right way up, pushing out of the water with a gutteral gasp. 

The waves were high. It was hard to swim. He looked about in a panic, trying to find help, but all he could see was the empty sea and the quick moving boat. There was no land to swim for. The ship was too fast to catch.

There was nothing but water for miles…

Nothing but water, blood, and bodies.

It was then Dante realised that he was the unlucky one, because unlike his siblings, his death would not be quick.

It would be lonely and drawn out.

And painful.

A wave rose up above him and Dante paddled harder, shaking when it turned him over.

He plunged back under the water.

He was wet, and he gasped, eyes wide open.

_ Gottaswim! Gottaswim! Gottaswim! Gottaswim! _

His foot hit something solid and he took off, panting tightly. Almost clawing to get away.

_ Go!Go!Go!Go!G- _

SLAM!

_ Ow. _

Dante stumbled, staggering until he fell on his back. He just breathed for a moment, eyes darting wildly.

There was a white ceiling before three familiar faces appeared to stand over him.

“Whoa,” Dimitri 2 spoke. All three brothers were wide eyed and looked somewhat concerned. “You okay?”

“Yeah, we just wanted to wake you for lunch!” Dmitri 3 winced.

“I told you not to use the bucket of water,” Dimitri 1 argued.

“It was pretty cool how he Wile E. Coyote-ed into the wall though,” Dimitri 2 said with a chuckle, though his smile didn’t meet his eyes.

“What?” Dante choked out, eyes darting to each of them.

“Lunch, bro, you slept through breakfast,” Dmitri 3 explained, leaning closer.

“Yeah! Dylan wants you up!” Dimtri 2 nodded.

“Aw, dude!” All three Dimitri’s winced as the third spoke. “I think you got a wicked bad nose bleed from gettin’ intimate with the wall!”

Dante glanced down, finding the wall had a fairly large crack in it. He touched his nose, which throbbed painfully.

There was distant clipping noise that got louder and louder the closer it came. With a grunt, Dante realized someone ran up the stairs before the door was thrusted open.

“I heard a loud noise! What was that?!” Dylan shouted looking around the room wildly.

“Ugh…” The triplets twitched when their eldest brother came closer.

“What in the- Dante?! Are you okay?!” Dylan asked as he looked the dark pup over. “Ah jeez! What happened?!”

“We woke him up, and he tried to phase through the wall,” Dimitri 1 said.

Dylan helped Dante up onto his unstable feet. “How did you wake him up?” The elder asked, suspicious.

“Ahhhh…”

“Ummmm….”

“Welll…..”

“That better not be a bucket of water.” Dylan frowned, looking at said object, standing in the middle of the room.

“Course not!” The three spoke, running for the door.

“It’s empty now!” Dimtri 1 laughed before they left the room.

Dylan groaned. “Those three…” He glanced back at Dante in concern. “You okay?”

Dante took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves. “Y-yeah… Yeah…”

“You sure? You're bleeding a lot.” Dylan tried to tilt his head to see better, but Dante looked down, finding a puddle of blood.

_ Blood, blood,  _ **_blood-_ **

“I need to use the bathroom!” Dante blurted, then ran - or well stumbled away. He shoved the door closed before panting, rubbing at his eyes.

Oh dog… Oh dog, why did he keep dreaming that? Was that the possible future some other timeline had taken? He moaned, bending over himself and curling up into a ball. Why did he have a different, horrible dream every night where the family died gruesomely?

_ Stupid Devil woman. Stupid coat! _

He licked his forearm rapidly. It was something Dante had discovered a while ago. The motion kinda helped ease the strain in his chest. Nibbling lightly at it helped even more.

He stopped when he tasted blood, concerned he had bitten too hard, but found it was just leaking out of his nose. Dante grabbed a few pawfuls of tissue paper and held it to his snout, mumbling as he tried to stem the bleeding.

_ Why did he run into the wall like that… Couldn’t he just wake up like a normal dog? _

_ Couldn’t he just sleep and dream like a normal dog? _

_ Stupid. _

Someone pawed at the door behind him as he finished wiping blood up off the floor. He tossed out the tissues before opening it.

“Hey!” Dylan was there, ears perked. “You feelin’ better? You were in here for twenty minutes.”

“O-oh. Yeah, fine. Just wanted to clean up a little.” Dante sighed, scratching the back of his neck.

“Well, lemme just look. It’ll make  me feel better.” Dylan insisted, and Dante relented with a groan, letting his brother inspect his nose closely. Dylan tilted his head left and right, making Dante whine, growing impatient.

“Well?” Dante snorted. “Is it still attached?”

“Ha ha,” Dylan huffed. “I’m just worried… and…” He looked uncertain, kicking the door closed behind him. “And I wanted to talk to you.”

“About what?”

“I’ve been busy for the last few weeks since the Cruella incident. Had pups up to my ears…” Dylan frowned. “They're still not dealing with it well either, not that I blame them.” He rubbed the back of his head warily. “Look, I want to take a second to check on how you're doing… and because I wanted to talk about what happened with Hunter.”

Dante sighed, rolling his eyes. “Dylan, I forgive you already. I know Dolly faked all those predictions, how were you supposed to believe me?”

_ You can’t see the future at all, you're fooling even yourself. Why are you such a needy, lying little attention whore. _

“It’s not that, Dante,” Dylan said, looking serious. “I mean, I’m glad, but I’m more worried about what happened after Hunter showed up.”

Huh?

“Huh?” Dante blinked, confused. “What do you mean?”

“The part where you got all… giddy.” Dylan frowned. “You were happy, yeah, but it was so… off putting. It’s like you were so happy it hurt you. You were off and not thinking clearly. Then you just, well, went OUTSIDE and ran right into Hunter’s arms. He was here to hurt us, or at least take us away, and while I was trying to get everyone safe upstairs, you let him catch you. For almost no reason.”

Oh.

Oh yeah, that happened, didn’t it?

The moment was a whirlwind of just… joy. As soon as he saw Hunter out that window his brain doused him in happy feelings, and he… he honestly had a hard time remembering what he did in that moment. Hunter’s appearance seemed to validate all his claims for his future-seeing abilities.

Like his existence was validated almost too. 

Dante recalled looking through the mail slot like a young pup waiting for the mailman. He recalled Dylan yelling at him to get upstairs. Then he was hit with another wave of delight, and he jumped out the dog door, unable to stay away from the boy any longer. He just- he had needed to show his appreciation. He was just so HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY to see him. He even held still while the boy had tied him up in a net and held him hostage.

When Hunter started ranting about his imprisonment and how much he hated the Dalmatians, Dante suddenly felt the happiness drain out of him almost violently. It happened so fast he was shocked, but when he looked up to see Hunter laughing at him, face twisted and wild, he realized how much trouble he was in.

And he got scared.

“What was that?” Dylan asked, watching Dante closely. “Were you… okay? Did anything feel off?”

“I-I dunno… I was just so happy,” Dante admitted.

Dylan winced. “Is that an off feeling for you?”

“No.” Dante frowned. “I get happy, it's just that I was a hundred times happier then.”

“How do you feel now?” Dylan asks, putting a paw to Dante’s shoulder.

“Fine, I mean, normal…” Dante subtly rubbed his forearm. “Close to it. Not sleeping well.”

“Who has these days?” Dylan sighed. “Listen, maybe it was just stress. Check in with Deepak, he might be able to help you. I know he’s been busy the last little while, but see if he can squeeze you in, huh?” 

_ Y̶o̶u̶ ̶c̶a̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶d̶o̶ ̶a̶n̶y̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶o̶n̶ ̶y̶o̶u̶r̶ ̶o̶w̶n̶ _

“Yeah, I could check and see…” Dante said, looking at the floor.

“Perfect! Today is a lazy day around the house, so go see him whenever you can. I gotta go check on Dorothy and see what Dolly is up to.” Dylan headed to the door and pulled it open. He looked back before he left. “Keep me updated, okay?”

“Sure.” Dante watched his brother leave before groaning.

Sure.

* * *

  
  


“And breathe, brother.”

“Breathing,” Dante mumbled, eyes shut tight as he sat on the ground outside. Deepak was on the trampoline, massaging his temple. A usually foolproof technique to settle Dante’s nerves… or well, was foolproof. Right now it wasn’t really working. The stress dancing around his mind was still there. That gnawing black pit in his chest was still there. Why wasn’t this working like it normally did?!

_ You're getting worse. _

“Hmmm.” Deepak frowned, clearly not seeing improvement either. “Very strange. You responded so well to this before. Your aura is all… wibbly wobbly now.” The younger pulled his paws away, and Dante groaned, glancing back at his brother warily. Deepak blinked slowly, a troubled expression on his face. “Maybe it's the fact you got so stressed in such a short amount of time?”

“Maybe,” Dante agreed. “Why isn’t this happening to anyone else though? I should be used to stress!”

“Well, everyone is different.” Deepak shrugged. “They might deal with stress better or have an easier time moving past trauma. Maybe they are stressed but have different ways of managing it!” Deepak bounced a bit on the trampoline, excited. “Oh! You could join my morning yoga group! Or our drum circle! Or our therapeutic craft session!” Deepak thought for a moment. “Dolly, Delgato, and a few others go running. That could help. I know Dawkins has made a new, homebrew Poodlewolf campaign with… her… as the main villain. Some of our siblings have found it cathartic and a fun way to take their minds off things.” 

Dante grimaced. He didn’t really want to run or do crafts or anything. He honestly wanted to be alone. If only the massage thing had worked. One and done! Why weren’t things ever that easy?!

“Ah, I think I’ll pass for now.” Dante sighed, getting up and turning back to the house. “Thanks for the attempt, Deepak, but I think I’ll look for something more useful.”

He only got a few steps before Deepak grunted.

“Excuse me!?” The younger asked, angry. “Useful?!” He hopped to the ground. “You think all this stuff is all useless?! 

Oh. Oh no. That didn’t come out right at all! Dante looked back, biting his lip. He had meant useful to  _ him _ !

Yet before Dante could speak, the little guru growled at him. Looking closer, Dante could see Deepak was exhausted. The bags under his eyes matched his spots. Clearly Deepak was more stressed than he let on as well. Likely because he was dealing with his own stress as well as everyone else’s…

_ And you just made it worse. Way to go! _

“Well, dear brother!” Deepak said sternly, heading back the house as quickly as his little legs could go. “Our programs have had amazing results with the younger pups! ALMOST everyone seems to be getting better with OUR help!” He got to the door and pushed open the flap. “So if ANYTHING is useless in this house! It's definitely not OUR CLASSES.”

Deepak left him to stew with that, the door flap swinging in his wake. Dante groaned and slapped himself on the head.

**STUPID!**

_ He’s right, you know… _

Dante sat down, scowling down at the green grass beneath his paws. He knew it was a sort of simple fix. Deepak could hold a grudge but not for very long. He just needed to apologize. 

Dante yanked on his ear. When should he do that though?! Deepak was busy all damn day, and if the conversation didn’t go the way he wanted, Deepak would just be more pissed off for his next class! Not to mention the kid needed his sleep, and Dante did not want to have this conversation in front of a full bedroom of puppies…

_ Deepak’s your little brother, and he’s doing WAY more for the family than you are. _

Dante sighed, standing up and heading inside. Well, he had wanted to be alone, and now he had burned one of the few bridges that could help him out. Maybe he could fix it, but it would be best to give it a day so Deepak could calm down.

Dante slunk into the basement, crawling under the stairs to one of his hiding spots. Besides a few spiders and cobwebs, he was alone with his thoughts.

His wonderful, wonderful thoughts.

Dante began to lick his foreleg again, nibbling lightly here and there. The tight band in his chest loosening enough for him to breath.

It didn’t leave though.


	2. Clint

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been working on this for a while! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Hey Guys! This is an announcement to tell you all I have a Tumblr specifically for this AU and for 101 Dalmatian St! If you have any questions feel free to ask! I'm actually excited to try and answer them! OR if you just wanna talk puppies, ideas or anything at all you can find me there! I'll be posting stuff for the AU/ Fanfiction there, along with other Dalmatian stuff!
> 
> Also I opened commissions (FOR DRAWINGS) on my tumblr. Take a look if you'd like!
> 
> https://notsoblackandwhite101.tumblr.com/

The rest of the day was pretty abysmal. As it was in a house of one hundred and one, word tended to spread very quickly when anyone of the family members were having a disagreement. Deepak and Dante’s small social misstep was soon common knowledge, and Dante knew it wouldn’t help the situation. Deepak would be hearing the gossip just like he was, and it would keep reminding him why he was angry. Just like how it frustrated Dante himself.

Dinner came and Dante emerged from hiding, slipping through the crowds to find a seat at the table. Nobody really looked at him, but whenever someone did notice they whispered to each other, likely about him and Deepak.

Speaking of whom was seated across the table, close to the end. Dante sat at an empty spot, watching his brother stare into space. Deepak seemed more tired than before, blinking slowly and not hearing the ruckus around him in the busy dining room. His ear twitched though, and Deepak looked over, locking eyes with Dante when he felt the other’s stare. Fatigue turned to irritation and Deepak huffed, looking pointedly away.

_Right, still mad._

Dylan was a few seats over from the little guru. He glanced between the two before offering Dante a disappointed look.

_Oh great..._

Dolly’s shouts pulled Dylan’s attention away before the other could try and make his way over however. She laughed, and Dylan managed to get out a shocked gasp before everyone was buried in an avalanche of kibble. Dante shook himself clean before he heard the other kids cheering and giggling at the mess. The table was covered and so were many puppies. Some of whom were eating themselves clean. Dylan was yelling as Dolly kept firing kibble, and Dante looked down at his empty bowl before sighing.

He wasn’t hungry.

He stood and slipped out of the room, unnoticed in the madness, going back upstairs to the bedroom. He picked out a nice, dark corner, slipping under a blanket. As soon as he was settled he started licking again.

He wasn’t sure how long he was upstairs for, but he was able to lick his one arm so thoroughly it got sore. When he parted the fur, he noted the skin looked red and irritated.

So he switched to the other one.

He stopped when Dylan and Dolly herded the rest of their siblings in for the night. Each pup was placed in a warm bed with a kiss and a hug by the two elders. Many of the pups were so worn out by the day that they were asleep the moment their head hit the pillow.

_Lucky…_

Dylan ran around, checking on everyone and counting them all up, but paused when he came to Dante.

“So what happened with Deepak?” He asked, worn out and slightly miffed the two were fighting at all.

“I missworded something,” Dante grunted. “I didn’t mean to say anything mean, but that’s how he took it…”

“You're gonna apologize though, right?” Dylan said, brow raised.

“Yeah, yeah… Just giving him time to cool down.” Dante sighed, glancing at Deepak's bed hanging on the far side of the room. One black paw sticking out. 

“Fine,” Dylan mumbled, looking over as well. “Just don’t leave it too long, okay?”

“Sure…”  
  


“Now let’s see… ninety six, ninety seven-...” Dylan looked around, eyes widening. “Oh- oh no! Ninety seven?! But where's-?”

CHOMP!

“Ahhhhhhh!- there she is,” Dylan said, looking at his tail. Dorothy was behind him, chewing on it. He stood, letting his youngest sister cling to his tail as he carried her to her bed. Dolly chortled from her bed on the fireplace mantle as he passed.

“Goodnight, Dolly,” Dylan said dryly, plucking Dorothy off his tail and putting her to sleep.

“Goodnight, chew toy,” she chuckled back.

There were a chorus of sleepy goodnights from anyone left awake, then the lights went out, replaced by the glow of a few tiny night lights dotted around the room. It was a time Dante had come to hate, because everyone was asleep and he was finally alone.

And he hated it.

He used to revel in the silence, but now it just… made him uneasy. Not to mention time moved so slowly. It made him anxious. It made him lick and nibble. His other arm started to sting now, so he switched back. Hours upon slowly grinding hours of the sleepless night rolled by. He tried to distract himself, thinking of ways he could apologize to Deepak, or maybe something he could set up in case the DeViles came knocking again…

Maybe a bunker downstairs? Diesel might be able to dig something like that. They could hook into the water down there. With more than one secret escape tunnel! He could stockpile food. Maybe they could make some concrete walls to support everything. Actually, there was a lot of unused space under the house. They could really expand their living space down there.

Hey, this was all coming together.

He could make it so they all had their own room down there! Maybe they could just live down there instead of the house! Dawkins could hook up lights, They could make Triple D a rehearsal space. Da Vinci her own art studio- no! Art workshop! Deepak could have a meditation zone!

Oh! That would be the perfect apology to Deepak! A meditation zone! He could draw up plans!

The empty hole in his chest turned to soda bubbles and Dante squirmed excitedly. Oh man! Come on, sun! Rise already! He needed to get to work on his end of the world, family paradise! 

Wait! Why did he let the sun tell him what to do?! He could just get up now and get started! Who was gonna stop him, the sun!? Dante got up, tip toeing around sleeping pups before he got out the door.

Paper. Pencils! Crayons! Magazine cuttings!

Dante settled at the table in the kitchen. It was about two in the morning, and the only light was from the window. He started by sketching the space, but he kept going bigger and bigger. He added a room here! Some bedrooms there! A space here! This could be Dylan’s room, Dolly’s room, then the Dimitris could have their own rooms, and-

Oh! Deepak’s meditation room! Right!

Dante looked up what they would need on the tablet left out in the kitchen. He researched a bit about Guru Miaow and what they would likely require. Some ideas for designs. Some architectural things. Some bunker safety stuff…

The sun rose outside by the time he finished that. Dante smiled at the work he finished, then he ran for a drink of water. 

They were all going to love it! Just wait till he finished the rest of the rooms! Maybe he should do the dining room next.

Wait. What time was it?

The clock on the stove read out at 6 am. The pups would be up soon! Since he was already up and at ‘em, maybe he should take a break from planning and make breakfast? Yeah! That was a good idea!

Going out to the dining room, Dante looked over the bowl flinger and the kibble pump before realizing he had NO idea how they worked.

No problem! He could do it the old fashioned way!

Dante laid out all ninety eight bowls on the table one at a time, making sure they were perfectly aligned. Then he grabbed a bag of kibble, pouring a careful amount in each. By the end, Dante knew why the family had the kibble pump. It took almost an hour to do it without the machines. Still it was done! Now he could go back to work on the bunker!

Maybe he could make it so the machines were built into the walls! Or they could do a conveyor belt! 

Dante rushed back into the kitchen, pouring over his papers excitedly. 

Put that here! Put that there! Big table, lots of cushions, the family portrait could go over the table! Along with mum and dad’s wedding picture- Oh! OH! A treat dispenser! And easy to clean floors.

As he went on, Dante could make out the tell tale rumble of a puppy avalanche coming down the stairs. There was a surprised murmur from them when they saw the table already set, but chose not to argue before the sound of a small army feasting away rose in the air.

The kitchen door creaked as someone pushed it open.

“Dante?” Dolly said in confusion. “Did you set the table?”

“Yeah-yeah!” Dante said swiftly, waving her off. “I’m busy right now, one sec!”

“Huh? Hmmm.” Dolly seemed worried, but her attention was pulled away.

“Wow! Dolly! Did you set the table?!” Dylan asked, shocked. “It’s so neat and clean! It’s... beautiful!”

“Ugh, well…” Dolly started, going back to the dining room.

“That’s so nice of you! Tell you what, I’ll handle washing. To make it fair.”

“Well, sure, why not?” Dolly said quickly, laughing a little at the end nervously. “That sounds totally fair! Yeah...”

“Great! Let’s dig in then- Oh! Have you seen my phone anywhere-?”

The conversation drifted away, and Dante kept working.

As the pups finished up breakfast, Dante jerked up, hearing a few head to the back yard.

Yoga. Morning yoga class! He needed to show Deepak before that! He couldn’t wait!

Dante raced from the kitchen, plans in his maw. He saw Deepak dragging a few yoga mats into place in the backyard and Deepak noticed him after a moment, face dropping to a scowl.

“Oh. Hello, brother…” Deepak huffed. “Here to observe my USELESS class?”

“Nope!” Dante said, dropping his things. He must have spoken loudly, because Deepak looked back to him, eyes wide. “I came because I have something for you!”

Deepak stared at him before backing away, curling up slightly. “It's not a charlie horse, is it? That's what the Dimirti’s say before they-”

Dante laughed, very loudly and very disjointedly. “No! Not that! This!” He rammed the paper under Deepak’s snout. The boy took it cautiously before looking it over.

“What is this? Looks like…”

“It’s a meditation, yoga, spa, de-stressing zone! See-” Dante leaned over Deepak’s shoulder, pointing at things. “There the mediation balls! They’re going to be those Pouf ottoman things you can sit on! Then that's the yoga area with built-into-the-floor sponge pads! It cushions everything under the yoga matts! Then we got a pool spa area, with a meditation garden, and a study area for Guru Miaow books and texts. Not to mention, when you look at it from above, you can see it’s in the shape of the symbol of Guru Miaow himself!”

Deepak held the picture out farther away before blinking. “It is!”

“See that? That's a purified water bowl for drinking! Doubles as a tranquility fountain! We’ll have bamboo here! Some balance board there! Then this door opens to stairs to the gym area and a shared bathroom for showering off after heavy workouts or spa sessions. Then this door is to Da Vinci’s art area. Then you can do zen crafts!”

“It’s… it’s amazing,” Deepak admitted, eyes round. “It's perfect. The shrine of my dreams.”

“And it’s gonna become reality!” Dante said quickly.

“What?!” Deepak gasped, looking back at him. “There is no room in the house!”

“Yes, but under the house? Lots of room!” Dante said. “We can add some sunlight-replicating lights to the ceiling and it’s like nothing ever changed. You won’t even know you’re ten stories underground under this layer of concrete!” Dante pulled another plan out of the pile, detailing the whole thing. “See, that’s the house-”

“Where did you get all this?!” Deepak asked, shocked. 

“I made it last night! I’m gonna get started soon!” Dante said, bouncing in place.

“Last night?!” Deepak frowned. “Dante, this is amazing, but you can’t just dig out-” Deepak counted before coughing. “Twenty stories under the house?!”

“Course I can! You can do anything if you put your mind to it!” Dante laughed. “Watch, I got the perfect crew right here- Hey, Diesel!” 

“Yeah!” The pup shouted, popping out of the ground a few feet away.

“Can you help me dig out a giant hole under the house?!”

“You had me at a giant hole!” Diesel shouted, tail wagging. “I can dig it!”

Dante turned back to Deepak, gesturing for effect. “Huh? HUH?! See what I mean?!”

“Well… I suppose…” Deepak sulked again. “Though I thought you said this stuff was useless…”

“Yeah, to me!” Dante scoffed. “Everyone else though, they’re getting stuff out of it! It must work! Just not for me, because I’m horrible!”

“Huh?!”

“What, you didn’t already know that about me?” Dante laughed, taking his plans back. “You just wait though! Diesel and I are gonna get started!”

“You're not…? Hold on- you didn’t think…?” Deepak mumbled, watching Dante ‘skip’ towards the house. “I just- HOLD ON!”

“Hmm?” Dante turned back to him.

“A-are you ok?” Deepak asked, concerned. “You're not acting like yourself…”

Dante blinked. “I’m fine! Don’t worry!” He went towards the door. “Let's get started, Diesel!”

“Comin’!” 

Deepak squeaked when Diesel dug out of the earth right under him, then chased after the goth into the house. Deepak stared after them in worry, but saw his class exiting out the door after a few moments.

Uncertain, he went back to focusing on his set up.

* * *

  
  


Diesel was a mighty fine digger. They managed to dig out a story under the house, and Dante already planned around their first road block.

Who put all these pipes and electrical wires here?

Still he was working out a way to arrange them on a fresh sheet of paper as Diesel started on the second story. However a few seconds in he came up for air.

“Can we break for a sec, Dante?” The pup asked, shaking himself clean. “I’m having loads of fun, but Dylan said we were taking a family trip to the park today around noon!” 

“Park?!” Dante repeated enthusiastically. “Why didn’t you say so!? We can start again after dinner!”

“Sweet!” Diesel smiled, heading up the ramp to the stairs. “This is great, Dante! We should do this more!”

Dante followed him up into the hall, where Dolly was finishing counting heads. She looked at them in confusion. “There you guys are, where were you?”

“Diggin’!” Diesel said, walking past her.

“Yeah, diggin’!” Dante agreed.

“You were digging?” Dolly frowned in suspicion. 

“I left that to the professional, but I was nearby.” Dante shrugged with a grin, tail beating a mile a minute. “Still had a lot of fun with my little brother!”

“You said it!” Diesel offered his paw for a fist bump sort of motion, and Dolly jerked when Dante actually accepted.

“What in the-?”

“Park time!” Dylan yelled, throwing open the door.

“PARK! PARK! PARK!” A wave of puppies swallowed Dylan whole, Dante actually chanting and running with them.

The park was pretty empty until they arrived. They split apart at the entry, pooling into little groups to play or run around. Dolly and Delgato started to race, Dolly on her skateboard and Delgato his wheels. Da Vinci started some life drawing with DJ joining her to watch. Triple D seemed to be working on a tan. Everyone seemed to find their usual past times with ease.

Dante was usually by himself at the park, nervously watching for danger, but today he didn’t feel like being alone. He pranced around until he happened upon Dee Dee and Dizzy up on a hill. They had a ball, likely brought from home, and were playing fetch with each other. Dante ran up to them.

“Room for one more?!” He asked, almost vibrating on his paws.

“Dante?” Dizzy asked, shocked to see him. Dee Dee came back with the ball in her mouth, but dropped it upon seeing him.

“Whoa,” Dee Dee spoke. “You're smiling!”

“Yeah!” Dizzy nodded. “Really, really big!”

“Like the Joker!” Dee Dee said eloquently. 

“I know! It’s just a good day, I guess!” Dante said. And it was actually true. Today has been a good day. He hadn’t felt this good in a long time.

Best keep the ball rolling! Haha!

“Want me to throw and you guys can race for it!?” Dante asked.

“Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!” Dee Dee and Dizzy spoke at once, jumping in delight. It was difficult to find anyone to throw a ball in this family, when most wanted to fetch. Dante took the ball and tossed it as hard as he could. The two girls raced after it. 

They were neck in neck on the way down the hill, but Dee Dee had the lead and caught up with the ball when it landed on the ground, picking it up in her mouth. Both ran back up the hill to him.

“Again! Again!” they chanted.

So again he threw it. Watching them nearly trip over each other for the ball was amusing. They looked like they were having fun…

He should build the ball thrower in the gym, and one for frisbees, and a boomerang one!

Dizzy came back with the ball this time, dropping it at Dante’s feet. He threw it again, both girls laughing.

What if he added treadmills!? That would be great! A videogame station maybe too, for VR! Dawkins would love that!

The girls returned, but they were both panting for breath.

“Man, Dante, you got a good arm!” Dee Dee commented, dropping the ball.

“Ye-yeah! Maybe we could throw for a bit.”

“Sure!” Dante hopped down the hill a bit, waiting until the two were ready. Dizzy went first, chucking the ball and Dante was on it in seconds. He followed its trajectory before he jumped, catching it mid air, and landing back on the ground on all fours. He rushed back up to his sisters, both of whom we’re starry eyed.

“Wow! Dante, you can catch mid air?!” Dee Dee gasped.

“So cool!” Dizzy added.

“It’s easy when you’re bigger!” Dante laughed, handing the ball to Dee Dee. He jumped in place. “Throw it again! Throw it again!”

The two shared a confused look, but Dee Dee shrugged with a smile and threw it as hard as she could. Once more Dante chased after it, waiting until the right moment to jump and catch it in his mouth.

He felt like he was flying. He felt like he could do anything!

When he landed, Dante laughed around the ball, rolling around the grass for a second. Just enjoying the day, the weather, just everything!

When he got back up the hill though, he found Dizzy and Dee Dee we’re no longer alone. Dylan was also there, with Deepak, oddly enough.

“It must not be much fun if you catch it so easily.” Dee Dee sighed, taking the ball from him.

“Nah! It’s fun!” Dante laughed loudly. “Don’t worry about it!”

Dizzy went to speak, but Dylan nudged her a little, making her quiet.

“Hey, Dante,” Dylan started, looking pensive. “H-how you doin’?”

“I feel great!” Dante smiled widely.

“Yeah,” Dylan winced a little. “Like happy… but times one hundred?”

“Maybe more like one hundred and one. Huh? Huh?!” Dante smirked, nudging Dylan in the side.

“Ooooooh, yeah… haha,” Dylan managed to say, looking nervous.

“See? He’s joking around and being all… not Dante!” Deepak whined, clutching at Dylan’s fur. “He’s all creepy and happy!”

“I see it, I see it,” Dylan hissed back between his teeth.

“Dante! Come play again!” Dizzy called to him, the ball raised. “This one you’ll never catch!”

“I doubt that!” Dante challenged, running to position.

“Uh, girls! I dunno if that's a good idea,” Dylan said, eyes wide.

“Just one more!”

“Plllleeeeaaase!” Dee Dee whined. “We’re gonna make it harder for him this time!”

Dylan frowned, thinking about it, before relenting. “Alright! Only one more though!”

“YEAH!” Both girls cheered, holding the ball up. “Here it comes, Dante!”

Dante ran down the hill as the girls reeled back-

Then they suddenly changed direction, turning to throw the ball behind them.

Dante laughed when he realized he had been tricked. He ran up the hill and leapt over the two, making them squeal happily. Then he started down the other side of the hill after the ball, which was a good deal ahead of him. Dante panted, picking up speed, getting closer and closer and-

“Dante! DANTE! **DANTE, STOP**!”

Dante wasn’t sure what Dylan was yelling about. He was so close! He could almost taste the ball! Nothing could stop him now, was his brother crazy?!

He was invincible!

Then something crashed into his side.

They both grunted, rolling along the sidewalk roughly before coming to a halt. Dante pushed himself up onto his forelegs, looking around in confusion. The dog over him groaned until they got to their paws as well. Dolly grunted, pushing her helmet back into place from where it slid.

“You okay?” she moaned, looking at him.

“Yeah.” Dante shrugged with a chuckle. “Sorry, guess neither of us were watching where we were going, huh?” 

“Neither of- DUDE!” Dolly snapped, glaring at him. “You almost ran into traffic! I had to literally crash into you to make you stop!”

“What?” Dante asked in goodhearted confusion, ear raised.

“Dylan was screaming at you to stop!” Dolly yelled, gestured to the direction Dante had been headed. Looking over, he realized they were just a few pawsteps from the curb. Dante noted the ball in the gutter across the street.

Then Dante saw Dolly’s skateboard, broken on the road. Wood splintered and wheels still spinning. Likely run over.

“Oh.” Dante said.

“Yeah, ‘oh!’” Dolly growled. “What were you thinking!? You almost died!”

“We gotta make you a new skateboard.”

“That’s righ-” Dolly shook her head, then cleaned out her ear. “WHAT did you just say?” 

“Your skateboard!” Dante pointed to it. “We need to make you another! I’m sure there are videos on YouTube- oh man! I gotta add a skateboard park to the bunker!” Dante gasped brightly, putting his paws to his head. “What if we just made our own park!? Right in the bunker?!” He bounced a bit, excited. He needed to go home and plan-

“DANTE!” Dolly yelled right in his face. “YOU. ALMOST. DIED!”

“Yeah, yeah, that doesn't matter right now!” Dante brushed her off. “We need to get some measurements in! You want a normal skateboard or a longboard-? ooooh, maybe a land board?! I bet-”

Slap!

Dante blinked, holding his sore cheek. He looked back at his sister. Dolly was breathing hard, looking beyond livid. Though some tears pricked in her eyes.

Huh?

There was approaching, heavy breathing before Dante was squashed in a tight hug. Dylan whined as he clutched at his brother, running a paw over Dante’s head.

“Oh my dog. Oh my dog. Oh my dog- that was close- that was too close!” Dylan said tightly, wheezing a bit. He pushed Dante out of the hug to shake him a little. “Didn’t you hear me?! I can’t-!!!” He whimpered. “What were you-?!! You didn’t even slow down! Didn’t you hear the cars?!”

“Not really,” Dante managed to say, his face a bit smooshed by Dylan’s paws.

“That was super scary, Dante!” Dizzy shouted as she and Dee Dee came closer.

“You almost got squished!” Dee Dee nodded quickly. 

“Good thing Dolly saved you!”

“Even if she lost her board.” They both paused to look mournfully at the smashed board.

“I can get another stupid board…” Dolly grunted, spinning around walking away. “Get everybody together! We’re going home.”

“It’s not even been an hour yet!” Dee Dee frowned, both the pups following after her. “We only played a little!”

“Dolly’s right!” Dylan said, releasing Dante’s face, though he grabbed onto his brother’s collar instead. “We’re going home, something’s not right.”

Both the girls mumbled, but didn’t fight the order, going off to tell the others.

“Why are we leaving? We should enjoy all the nice days we have left before the end of times!” Dante smiled to Dylan, ears perked as he bounced a bit. 

“No!” Dylan gave him a slight shake. “Dog damn it, Dante, something’s wrong with you!”

“When is something ever right with me?” Dante laughed. 

Dylan stared at him, mouth just a bit open in a tiny frown.

Dante squeaked when Dylan led him to the park entry by his collar. Even on three legs, Dylan had a wider gait, so Dante had to speed walk just to keep up with him. When they got to the gates of the park a large mass of black and white spots were sitting and whining, Dolly trying to herd them all together.

“I don’t wanna go home!”

“I wanna stay and play!”

“This isn’t fair!”

“What's happening?” Diesel asked, half poked out of the ground like a gopher.

“Small emergency! Just a teeny tiny one!” Dolly explained, still a bit tense. “We’ll come back tomorrow, I promise.”

“Naw…” Fifty voices groaned. 

“March!” Dylan said, pointing back to the house. The way home was a much longer walk then it had been getting to the park. Pups dragged their feet and frowned. Dylan took up the back of the pack with Dolly up front to lead. He kept his eye out for any stragglers from the pile. 

And he never let go of Dante’s collar the entire walk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope to depict this as properly as possible! I'll have a full explanation at the end of the story...
> 
> Special thanks to my Beta Superdale 33!


	3. Mama

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What goes up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been working on this for a while! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Hey Guys! This is an announcement to tell you all I have a Tumblr specifically for this AU and for 101 Dalmatian St! If you have any questions feel free to ask! I'm actually excited to try and answer them! OR if you just wanna talk puppies, ideas or anything at all you can find me there! I'll be posting stuff for the AU/ Fanfiction there, along with other Dalmatian stuff!
> 
> Also I opened commissions (FOR DRAWINGS) on my tumblr. Take a look if you'd like!
> 
> https://notsoblackandwhite101.tumblr.com/

The front door swung open under the thunder of paws. Most of the pups were sulky and irritated their playday at the park was cut short, but Dolly kept the possible coup at bay.

“Yo, Da Vinci! Go dig out your old art sponges, ‘kay!? We’re gonna have a water war out back! Everybody else, get the house sponges, so long as they ain’t the bleach ones!” Dolly ordered. “Gonna be a free for all, capture the flag! No biting, pushing, or hitting unless it’s with a wet sponge or the hose!” 

Tails wagged again, slowly, at the proposition. Meanwhile, Dylan dragged Dante into the living room off to the side.

“Okay, stay here! We’re calling mom and dad!” Dylan ordered, plopping his brother down in the center of the room. 

“But there’s a water war-”

“Later!” Dylan said sternly, digging around for his phone in the couch. With a sigh, Dante watched the pups in the hall file into the back yard.

“What in the world is going on?” Dawkins asked, stepping into the living room. “I was expecting everyone to be at the park for a good few hours! I hoped to do some modifications on the bowl flinger while it was quiet.”

“Dante’s off again,” Dylan grunted, pulling off the cushion to look under it.

“Off?” Dawkins asked, looking to his dark brother in confusion.

Dante gave him a toothy smile back, tail beating against the floor, ears perked up excitedly. Dawkins blinked, expression turning worried.

“Oh my Dog.” Dawkins took a few steps back, closer to Dylan. “What’s wrong with him?”

“We don’t know,” Dylan said, finally hopping off the couch. “He was like this before, with Hunter, but it went away.”

“Well, it should go away again then.”

“Yeah, but it keeps happening, and he’s getting into dangerous situations when he’s like this! That's why we’re home early, he almost ran into traffic!” Dylan said. “We need mom and dad here, but I can’t find my phone!”

“Upstairs charging?” Dawkins suggested.

“No.” Dylan shook his head. “I checked.”

“I know where it is!”

They both glanced at the doorway to find Diesel coming into the room.

“Oh, hey!” Dylan ran over to try and push his little brother towards the backyard. “D-don’t you wanna play water war with Dolly and the others?! Haha! Nothing interesting here!”

“What about where I buried your phone?”

“You WHAT?!” Dylan pulled his paw back, shocked.

“I buried it… somewhere.” Diesel’s eyes looked in different directions for a second as he thought, but they righted when he returned to the conversation. “It was ringing this morning after breakfast and it was loud, so I buried it.”

Dylan grabbed his ears and pulled on them.

“It was ringing!” He groaned. “Diesel, why didn’t you put it on silent?!”

“I put it in the ground, and it got silent.”

Dylan slammed his head into his paw. “Well, go into the backyard and dig it up!”

“Can’t, water war.” Diesel shrugged just as a wet sponge splattered on the window behind him. “Plus, I promised Dante we’d finish up in the basement.”

Dylan went to lecture Diesel, but the words died in his throat. He dropped his paws to the floor. “Basement?”

“You're gonna looooove it!” Dante sang, causing them to glance over. He was still where Dylan had put him at the center of the room.

Dylan quickly looked back at Diesel.

“What did you two do?!” He asked, running for the basement stairs. Dawkins followed after him and Diesel took up the rear.

“We had a lot of fun. See, Dante wanted me to-”

“AHHHHHHH!” Dylan shouted. Dante perked his ears from the living room, still not moving an inch. “T-the basement! What happened!?”

“Digging!”

“I can see that, Diesel!”

“It’s impressive that you got around all the piping,” Dawkins said, his voice a bit harder to hear.

“Look at this- how did you even-!?” Dylan groaned. There was thumping back up the steps until Dylan returned to the living room, Diesel carried by his scruff. He plopped the younger boy on the ground. “You're both cleaning that up!”

“Course we are!” Dante agreed happily. “We just need to dig some more until we can build our bunker!”

“No! No bunkers!” Dylan ordered. “Just the two of you, filling in that hole!”

“Maybe in a bit,” Dawkins said, coming upstairs, a few papers in his mouth. “I can use this opportunity to change some of the old electrical and plumbing units. A few of those pipes are leaky and that may help fix the water bill, not to mention save our foundation.”

Dylan sighed. “Least it wasn’t a total waste then.” He looked at the papers. “What are these?”

“Plans, I think.”

“For the bunker!” Dante exclaimed, jumping in his seat. “For the family! It’s gonna be twenty stories down-”

“What about the metro?” Dawkins asked, looking the plans over. He lifted up the main one, unfurling it open. “This is a very big undertaking, Dante- Oh, is this workshop for me?” Dawkins cocked his head, pointing at an area of the plans. “Oh, my room is right next door. I suppose so… Look at that, you added a little secret hatch for me so I could sneak into bed late without being caught, how thoughtful!”   
  


Dylan leaned over. “Meditation area, spa, gym, library, art zone-” He shook his head. “Dante this isn’t possible.”

“Course it is, Diesel will dig, and Dawkins can do the electrical, then-”

“Who’s gonna pay for this?” Dylan asked, coming closer with the plans in paw. “Do you even have a price sheet? A supply list? What kind of permits do you need?”

“Ah-” Dante paused and his whirling brain spluttered. How were they going to pay for this? Well I mean they could-... Or maybe they-... Ugh.

The fizzy soda bubbles stopped popping. His chest felt like it had a hole again and the weight of reality returned in full force.

“There's no safety parameters or emergency exits. I dunno how you’d even vent this to be breathable!” Dylan continued, looking over Dante’s drawings. “I mean this is just-”

“I think it’s nice,” Diesel interrupted, looking at the paper as well. “There’s a playground with a sandbox!”

“Diesel, it's not remotely possible.” Dylan sighed, rubbing his eyes.

“I dunno what a TV remote has to do with this, but I do know you're making Dante all sad again,” Diesel said plainly, peering up to said brother with a pout.

Dylan looked up quickly at that. “Dante?”

Dante’s ears were back down, and he blinked owlishly. Had he really thought he could build a twenty story bunker under the house? Dante looked at the plans, not able to connect last night and this moment very well. It was a happy, peppy, bubbly blurr of memory snippets. 

“Dante? You okay?” Dylan tried again, putting his paw on Dante’s shoulder. He twitched in response, glancing up. “You good, Dante? Are you back to normal?”

**̶Y̶o̶u̶'̶r̶e̶ ̶a̶ ̶f̶r̶e̶a̶k̶.̶**

“Y-yeah,” Dante mumbled, mind still scattered. He waded through the fog of shock carefully. Not sure how everything came to this moment. “Just… trying to remember everything.”

“Okay, well then, you’ll be alright for now. Just stay inside until we can figure out what's going on.” Dylan sighed, turning back to Dawkins. “You fix up the pipes and things downstairs. The faster that’s done, the faster we can fill the hole in.” Then he looked at Diesel. “Meanwhile, we are going to find my cell phone, and I don’t care if we have to dig up half the yard doing it!”

“Half the yard!?” Diesel asked, smile growing.

“No, this is a punishment!” Dylan groaned as Diesel ran for the backdoor. “Ahh, dog damn it!”

“I’ll get my tools,” Dawkins said, heading out as well. “We’ll need to shut off the indoor plumbing if I’m to do this, good thing bath night is tomorrow. I’ll take a look for now and order the new pipes to be express delivered.”

“Thank you,” Dylan said, sounding tired. “Least something has gone right, I suppose.”

Dante’s ears drooped slightly.

Dylan seemed to notice, scratching the back of his neck. He looked back at Dante’s bunker plans before speaking. “You know, it was nice of you to plan a special place for everyone. If we could do any of this, it would have really been a treat.”

“Mmmm,” Dante mumbled, looking to the window on the side of the room, sunlight glittering in.

“...Dante, we’re gonna figure out what’s going on,” Dylan offered, putting the papers away in a nearby drawer. “You look exhausted. Take a nap for a bit, and I’ll find my phone. Mom and dad can help.”

“Yeah.” Dante shuffled over to the window, sitting down in the warm sunlight. “Okay.”

“Alright.” Dylan paused, unsure if he wanted to say anything else. Finally, he just decided to leave for the backyard, going to check on Diesel’s progress.

Dante stared out the window.

His mind slowly took stock of the last twelve hours. The wasted night drawing up useless plans that could never be used. Stupid peace offerings to Deepak without actually attempting to apologize. Ruining the basement as well as dragging Diesel into his madness, then almost dying at the park, scaring Dizzy and Dee Dee. Destroying Dolly’s board.

So much destruction all because he had lost himself to a moment of joy. Not a productive thing had been done. He just… wasted time. Wasted resources. Wasted his family's attention and patience. 

̶W̶a̶s̶t̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶l̶i̶f̶e̶ 

Dante was so tired. The lack of sleep caught up to him. He slumped to the floor and the black, clawing hole in his chest began to swallow him. Dante took a deep, shuddering breath, feeling like his body was filling with cold, heavy salt water. He lay down on his side as a cloud drifted by outside, shading the neighbourhood.

The bunker was a stupid idea. How did he ever think he could make something like that? Why was he so id **iotic that he forgot he had to pay for crap! Speaking of, what was the point of a bunker?! All you can do is wait down there, hoping your supplies hold out until the end of an emergency! What if there never was the end of an emergency, you moron?! What would you do then!? Besides the fact that if the world ends, then there’s no way to survive! You're powerless in such a situation. Useless!** **There is no point to anything you do!!!**

**You’re SO STUPID!**

The cloud passed and the sunlight returned, right into Dante’s eye. The easiest task would be to roll over or put his paw over his eye and block out the light. It was just he was so tired and heavy and worthless…

Dante looked away from the window, but light still burned his eye.

He didn’t even close it.

  
  


How long he laid on the floor was anyone's guess. Could have been minutes, could have been a few hours. Dante didn’t bother wondering about it. The sun burned against his eyes still, but no strength could be found to fix that either.

Just breathing was hard. He didn’t want to even think about moving.

Awareness returned with a sharp pain, the familiar feeling of tiny milk teeth nipping around the tip of his tail. He heard her gurgle as she chewed feverishly.

Dorothy.

**Least you're useful for something.**

He could feel her paws tugging on his tail, nipping and chewing as she went. He didn’t even look, staring under the couch at all the dust Dylan missed when he last cleaned, sun blazing away into his face.

“I can’t believe this! Look at me!”

“Oh, I know! How could Dolly think that a water game was a good idea?! We look like wet rags!”

“We need a trip to the groomers, stat!”

Triple D. Dante could hear them back somewhere in the house.

“Where’s the ipad? I’ll make us an appointment right away!” Destiny said. Three sets of pawed feet tapped into the room. “I’m sure our manager can set it up for today.”

“It’s over on the couch!” Dallas said. The pawsteps came closer, two of them jumping up onto the couch. “Which were you thinking?”

“The one downtown is dreadful! I’m never going there again!”

“Oh, I totes agree! What about that quaint country one?”

“Really nice, but it could take a bit with the traffic.”

“Oh, true.”

“What’s Dante doing?” Deja Vu asked, still on the floor. Likely looking at him.

“Just being all emo like always, I think,” Dallas muttered. She came to the edge of the couch to see, blocking the sunlight.

“Yeah, but Dorothy is chewing his tail up. The only one who lets her do that is Dylan.” Déjà Vu frowned. Dante felt someone poke his back. “Hey, Dante! Dante!”

“Whats going on?” Destiny asked, the couch creaking as she came over as well.

“Dante’s acting like super Dante,” Déjà Vu said. “Look at his tail.”

“Ough! How long has Dorothy been chewing? It’s all fuzzed up!” Dallas grimaced at the sight.

“Dante, doesn't your tail hurt?” Déjà Vu asked, shaking him. “Hey! Don’t ignore us!”

“Is he asleep?” Dallas asked.

“No, his eyes are open!”

“Dante?” Dallas asked, now sounding concerned. “Come on, this isn’t funny!”

“If this is a prank, we are so not amused!” Déjà Vu agreed.

“Calm down, guys, I’m sure it’s nothing,” Destiny offered, though her voice had a tinge of uncertainty. “Let’s just focus on our spa packages and- OH!”

“Destiny!”

Dante wasn’t sure what was happening, until the corner of the ipad caught him right in the eye, slamming on his head hard enough he could hear the screen crack.

“Oh crap!”

“Destiny!” Déjà Vu gasped. “You sweared!”

“Dante, are you okay?!” Dallas whimpered, jumping down and lifting the ipad off him. 

He hadn’t reacted at all when struck, and with the ipad gone, his face throbbed. His one eye was painful and a bit blurry… but nothing stirred within him. No anger, no shock, no irritation.

Nothing.

“Dante?” Destiny murmured, hopping down next to Dallas. “Hey, come on. Say something…”

Déjà Vu grabbed his ear in her paw, yanking on it and lifting his head off the ground a bit. When she let go, his head flopped to the floor again with a loud thump.

“Ahhhhhhhhh…” One of the girls whined deep in their throat.

“Dyyyyylllllaaaannnnn!” Dallas shouted, running out of the room with the two of her triplets close behind her. “Dylan! Something’s wrong!”

“What’s going on?” Da Vinci’s voice came instead of Dylan’s. She likely just came back in.

“It’s Dante! He’s just- just- laying there!” Déjà Vu whimpered. “We accidentally dropped the ipad right on him, but he didn’t even blink! It hit him kinda hard too.”

“That’s odd…” 

“We’re getting Dylan!” Destiny said, skittering out. “Dylan!”

“Whats going on?” DJ asked, just arriving as well and clearly confused. “Is Dante dead?”

“Don’t even joke!” Da Vinci scolded. The two came into the living room. “It’s not funny!”

“Okay! Sorry…” DJ mumbled. “I just- DOROTHY!”

“Oh wow…” Da Vinci muttered, both of them coming right up to him. The nibbling on his tail stopped, Dorothy fussing as someone pulled her off him. Claws clacked on the floor, then there was a pressure on his chest. 

“I can hear his heart beating,” Da Vinci mumbled. 

“Hey! Dante!” DJ rocked him back and forth on his side. “Come on, dude, can you just get up and talk to us.”

A pink, paint stained paw shifted his ear out of the way so his sister could look at his face easier. “He doesn't look right, DJ. Remember when Destiny and Dallas had that fever and cold? Their eyes looked all foggy and distant.”

“Whoa.” DJ leaned over him. “Yeah, but-” A paw laid on his head. “-he doesn't feel hot.”

“Dante, do you feel warm?” Da Vinci asked, patting his shoulder.

Dante didn’t feel anything.

“Come on, bro, just nod your head, wink, or something!” DJ mumbled. “Please?’

Nothing.

“What's happening now?!” Dylan’s groan echoed through the house. “Is Dante ignoring everybody?”

“Uh, no…” Da Vinci said, rubbing her paw on Dante's back. “It’s more like he’s not even mentally here.”

“What?!” He hurried over, paws running along Dante’s back, giving him a little jostle. “Dante! Dante! Is this about that bunker stuff?!”

Dante watched a dust particle float past his eye.

“Oh… oh no…” Dylan circled him, Da Vinci and DJ stepping away. “Come on, just- Dante, get up!” Dylan slipped a paw under his body and hefted him off the ground. Dante just flopped like a rag doll. “Dante?!”

“Careful!”

“Don’t drop him!”

**Do whatever you want...**

“I did that before, and he just hit the floor!” Déjà Vu whimpered as she and her sisters returned. Dante could actually see them a little from the angle Dylan had him.

More paws came into the room.

“Yo, Dyl! Diesel dug up your phone!” Dolly shouted from the back door. “Pun very much intended- Hey, what’s going on?” She came around the bend, standing behind Triple D. “What the…?”

“Dolly, something’s very wrong!” Dylan said quickly, holding Dante up a little higher. “He’s not responding to anything!”

“What? Seriously?!” Dolly set the phone on a table, coming to take a closer look. “Just put him back down on the floor! Let me look.”

This time he was carefully set down, Dolly flipping his ear back. He faced the hallway, the sun out of his eyes at last. His sister stared down at him, shifting on her paws before speaking. “H-he’s gonna be fine. Call mom and dad. I’m going back to the backyard.”

“What? What do you mean?! How do you know!?”

“Just call them! I’m keeping an eye on the pups!” Dolly yelled, glancing back at them from the hall. Her eyes drifted down to Dante, looking very uncomfortable. She shook her head then ran off.

“Okay…” Dylan mumbled, marching off and grabbing his phone. “Da Vinci, could you keep an eye on him for me?”

“Course,” she answered, stroking Dante’s back. 

“Thanks,” Dylan breathed, going to the kitchen, phone in paw. “I’ll just be a few minutes.”

Dante stared at the stairwell, eyes glazed. Everybody was fussing around him, but he felt nothing but misery. He should have at least been touched. They seemed to care so much…

Maybe he didn’t have the strength for that. 

“Do you think Deepak could help?” Da Vinci asked, trying to provide Dante some comfort, scratching him behind the ear.

“Worth a shot,” DJ said. “I’ll grab him. Think he’s in the treehouse.”

“Hurry!” Da Vinci called after him as he ran from the room to the back of the house. She mumbled as she patted Dante’s shoulder, likely anxious and not sure what else to do. 

Déjà Vu reappeared, coming around to sit in front of his face, lying so their noses were only inches apart. She looked back in his eyes, frightened.

“Dante? Are you gonna be okay?” Behind her Dallas and Destiny sat a ways back, Destiny hugging Dorothy to her side. The baby whimpering, affected by the mood of the room.

**Nothing was okay...**

Déjà Vu put a paw to his cheek softly. She didn’t seem to know what else she could offer.

“I’m here! I’m back, I got ‘em!” DJ shouted, returning with Deepak hot on his heels. The Guru froze at the sight of Dante. “See! Lights are on, but nobody's home! He hasn’t said a word!”

“D-Dante?” Deepak frowned, padding over and putting his paws to Dante’s temple. “J-just breath, I’m here…” The guru began to knead and massage his head. “We’re all here…”

Dante stared at Déjà Vu’s nose.

Deepak kept up his attempts for a good few minutes, the other siblings watching with bated breath. However, nothing changed. Deepak finally stopped, biting his lip. “I wasn’t sure… It didn’t help yesterday either, but I thought, maybe...”

“It’s alright, Deepak, you did your best,” Da Vinci said softly, touching his shoulder.

“No… I didn’t!” Deepak snuffled tightly, rubbing at his watery eyes. “Yesterday he came to me for help, but I turned it into a fight over something stupid!”

**You were right though. I’m useless.**

“Bro, it’s okay,” DJ spoke. “It’s not your fault, you didn’t know it’d be like this. There might not have been anything you could have done.” 

“He is so much worse! His emotions and auras have been all over the place!” Deepak sobbed. “Yesterday, it was tight and aching, greyish red. Then this morning he was a blinding yellow, burning like a flame, and flickering just as wildly! Like it was dancing- or maybe he was hurting! I-I don’t know!!”

“Okay, okay…” DJ said, trying to calm him down. “What’s it like now?”

Deepak put a paw on Dante’s head. “It’s… It’s nothing. It’s not sending out anything. It’s like a void, sucking everything in, I’ve never seen this before.”

“Mayhaps his aura burned out? Like that yellow phase was too much and now it needs to recoup?” Da Vinci offered, trying to help.

“Maybe, I don’t…” Deepak pulled his paw away. “I just wish I had tried harder before!”

“Nothing you could have done,” DJ said. “Besides, Dante will be okay. Mom and Dad will know what to do.”

“Hopefully…” Deepak sniffled.

“Come here.” Da Vinci offered him a hug, and the boy quickly leaned into her. “Everything will be okay, Deepak.”

Dante took a heavy, painful breath. 

**Everything would never be okay. He felt like shit for causing them all so much worry. He felt like shit because why couldn’t he just be normal?! He felt like shit because something was wrong with him! This wasn’t normal! He had no idea what was wrong with him…**

**He was so tired, but he couldn’t sleep. Why couldn’t he sleep?! He just wanted to sleep and never wake up.**

Sadness covered Dante like a blanket.

**Tuck me in and let me die.**

* * *

Dylan came back with the news that mom and dad had both left work early. They were on their way home and would be here soon. All the pups in the room calmed at the news, believing their parents could help better than they had. 

Dante didn’t share the sentiment. 

**Good job, mom and dad are missing work because of you, you idiot.**

Time trickled by slowly. Dylan paced between the living room and checking on everyone in the backyard. He had taken Dorothy up onto his back, letting her ride around as he walked and keeping her out of mischief. Deepak was red eyed and snuffling, wiping at his nose and still pretty upset, so Da Vinci took him upstairs so he could cuddle up in some blankets for a bit. She didn’t come back down afterward. She may have needed a break due to her own anxiety.

That only left DJ and Triple D, who had taken to lying on him in an effort to supply comfort. Though Dante didn’t really get any from it. They were humming to him softly, an old song he had sang for them a long time ago, learned from a dear friend and mentor back in New York. Usually it would calm him or at least comfort him.

None of these things occurred. 

Dylan would come over to look him over for improvement every few minutes, glancing up and down his form with desperate eyes, but to Dante, it just felt like it was getting worse.

The paw scanner beeping had them all lift up their heads. The door swung open and Delilah ran into the room. She took one look at the scene before rushing over.

“How long has he been like this?” She asked, slipping into a healthcare professionalism in seconds.

“I’m not sure. We got back from the park an hour and a half ago!” Dylan said, following her. “He was all happy again, like what I told you about before! Then he turned back to normal when we got home, and then…” He gestured to Dante helplessly.

“Right! You four, to the backyard!” Their mother ordered, nudging DJ and the triplets away lightly. “I need the space now! Take Dorothy with you!”

“Okay,” DJ mumbled, taking his baby sister from Dylan.

“Mom, is Dante gonna be okay?” Dallas asked. She and her sisters made room for their mother, but didn’t leave yet.

“Yeah, he’s not gonna die, right!?” Destiny frowned.

“I don’t know, I need to look him over. Guesstimating that he still hasn’t worsened, I’d say he’ll be okay, but I want to make sure.” She lightly swatted to the backdoor. “Now hurry along! We need privacy!”

“Come on, we can make a ‘get well soon’ song or something,” DJ suggested, leading them away. 

“With a dance?” Déjà Vu asked, sounding a bit lighter.

“Uh, yeah, with a dance! What kind of ‘get well soon’ song has no dance?” DJ said as their voices disappeared outside.

Dante didn’t blink when his mother pressed her paw to his neck. “Hmm, his heart rate is a bit slow… Not too different, but 50 bpm isn’t quite the normal 60 we look for…” She pressed her paw to his head. “No fever… Dante, can you hear me? Did you slip down the stairs or do anything that could cause internal damage?”

**His entire body was a damaged pile of refuse.**

“He almost ran into traffic today at the park. Dolly crashed into him, but it’s been a long time since then,” Dylan offered.

“Hmmm.” Delilah pulled out her stethoscope and listened to his heart and lungs, then started to push his fur apart, looking for bruises. “While a bit slower, he is breathing normally. His heart sounds fine and his paws are still warm. He hasn’t thrown up or anything?”

“No.”

“Well, that’s a good sign.” Delilah sighed, checking his legs. “I can’t really see anything horrible. I mean, his front legs are raw looking, but that’s just the skin.”

“Wait, why is the skin raw?” Dylan asked, concerned.

  
“I’ve seen this before with Da Vinci,” Delilah said. “Anxiety can cause a dog to lick and scratch and chew on themselves. It’s a sort of calming mechanism that can turn into a reflex or compulsion. Usually caused by stress.” Delilah looked thoughtful. “Hmmm, maybe there's nothing physically wrong here.”

“What do you mean?! He’s just laying there!” Dylan said frantically.

“Yes, but from what you said it sounds like it could be more of a mental illness than a physical ailment.” She stroked Dante’s head. “A very extreme one at that, and out of my scope. We should give a call to Dr. Spaniel and make an appointment as soon as possible.”

The paw scanner chimed again and the door was whipped open. They all paused to hear Doug pulling off his equipment. “I’m here! I’m home! What’s going on?!!”

“In the living room, Doug!” Delilah called. “Dante’s in a rough patch, I think…” 

“Dante?! Rough patch?! What do you mean?!” Doug asked, coming around the doorway. He stopped dead, looking down at his son on the floor.

“I think something is going on with his mental health,” Delilah explained, patting Dante’s head and looking him over. “He seems physically fine, so I think it’s best if we set up an appointment with a psychiatrist. That may help sort this out. What do you think?”

Delilah frowned when her husband didn't answer her.

“Doug?” she asked, looking up. Doug stared at Dante with wide eyes, then he suddenly backed away. Delilah stood quickly at the motion, worried. “Doug?!”

“I-I can’t-” Doug shook his head, slowly at first, not taking his eyes off Dante. Then he shook it faster, turning away entirely and biting his lip.

He took off running out the front door. 

Delilah squawked, going after him instantly. Dylan was just as surprised.

“Doug!”

“Dad?!”

The door shut, Delilah and Dylan following him out. However they didn’t seem to go very far. Dante could hear them out the window. Maybe they were on the porch or the sidewalk.

“Doug! What in the world is going on?!” Delilah shouted, sounding confused more so than angry. 

“I can’t! I just can’t!”

“Doug, in all our time together, you have never said those words to me! You’ve said ‘you didn’t know if you could,’ but never a firm ‘I can’t!’” Delilah said. “ Your son needs you!  Our son needs you! It’s not even a huge undertaking, we’re just going to have to get him to a doctor once he’s up and about and watch him closely until then!”

“Delilah, I CAN’T!”

The breeze whistled in through the window, followed by a deep sobbing. There was the padding of paws as Delilah likely pulled her husband in for a hug.

“Doug, please, I don’t understand!” She spoke in a gentle tone. “Tell me what's wrong.”

Dad snorted tightly, voice quivering as he spoke.

“He just… He looks just like SHE did before….”

Everything stood still for a moment, even the wind died down.

“Oh Doug.”

Dad cried harder, and Dante took another breath, which hitched a bit.

The weight grew heavier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope to depict this as properly as possible! I'll have a full explanation at the end of the story...
> 
> Special thanks to my Beta Superdale 33!


	4. Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been working on this for a while! I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Hey Guys! This is an announcement to tell you all I have a Tumblr specifically for this AU and for 101 Dalmatian St! If you have any questions feel free to ask! I'm actually excited to try and answer them! OR if you just wanna talk puppies, ideas or anything at all you can find me there! I'll be posting stuff for the AU/ Fanfiction there, along with other Dalmatian stuff!
> 
> Also I opened commissions (FOR DRAWINGS) on my tumblr. Take a look if you'd like!
> 
> https://notsoblackandwhite101.tumblr.com/

Dad just kept crying. 

The sound of his father sobbing in sorrow was a noise Dante had not heard since he was a toddler, and it was actually a little frightening. For a good number of reasons. He was just like her… and she killed herself. What did that say about his chances?! Would he eventually succumb to such temptations?

Dante found himself thinking that if his birth mother had felt this horrible, he couldn’t really blame her.

The door opened once more, but Dylan returned alone. He looked disturbed, eyes searching the empty hall in thought, mouth in a tight grimace. He glanced in at Dante for a moment, not really turning his head fully in his direction. Dylan swallowed, then made his way to the back yard.

He wasn’t gone long though, he returned just a few moments later with company.

“So what’s going on?” Dimitri 3 asked as they all padded into the living. 

“Why’s Dante on the floor?” Dirimiti 1 asked, seeing him the moment they came in. “Is he nappin’?”

“I’ll fetch a water bucket.” 

Dylan grabbed Dimitri 2 by the gold chain before he got far.

“No, you will not,” Dylan said, his voice a bit tense. “He’s… not doing okay, mentally.”

“Has he gone psycho?” Dimirti 3 asked, coming closer to Dante.

“No!” Dylan growled. “He’s just depressed right now. I wanna move him upstairs. Mom and dad need to keep an eye on him so we’re putting him in their room.”

“What's so bad about bein’ depressed he’s got to sleep with them?” Dimitri 3 asked, suspicious.

“And what's that noise?” Dimirti 1 asked, ears perked as he glanced at the open window. 

“Focus, please!” Dylan ordered, though he did go and close the window. “We need to get Dante upstairs.”

“Why isn’t Dolly here?” Dimitri 3 asked. “She’s bigger than we are.”

“Well…” Dylan seemed uncertain to the answer himself, but he seemed to think of something, eyes flickering to the window beside him. “It’s complicated. You guys will do fine.”

The three boys groaned, but came to Dante’s side. He felt one of them lift his front leg in the air, only to drop it.

“What the hell?” Dimitri 1 mumbled, confused. “He’s really out of it.”

“This isn’t a game!” Dylan said, temper clearly growing. “Your BROTHER is SICK. He needs to go to bed! Don’t treat him like a toy!”

“Whoa! Okay! Okay!”

“Chill, dude, we’ll help.”

Dylan took a calming breath, one likely taught to him by Deepak. “Alright. I’m going to lay down, you pull him onto my back. Then we’re going up the stairs, and I need you to stay with me, in case he starts to slide off.”

“Sure.” Dimitri 1 shrugged. “No prob.” 

When Dylan laid down beside Dante, Dimitri 2 took his front leg, pulling it over Dylan’s back. Dimitri 3 did the same with his back leg on the same side. Most surprising though was Dimitri 1, who held his head without being asked, keeping it from jostling.

**Why are they being so careful with something already broken?**

Once he was situated and balanced, Dylan slowly stood. The Dimitris all waiting with their front paws in the air, should Dante start to slip. Thankfully Dylan got to his feet and slowly started towards the stairs.

“Whats going on?!” Wheels squeaked as Delgado came in from the back. He looked at Dylan and Dante in confusion. “Is Dante hurt?”

“He’s gonna be fine, he’s just a bit…” Dylan stopped, unsure of how to word it to the younger boy.

“Depressed,” Dimitri 1 said.

Dylan shot him a look, clearly not wanting to say that to Delgado, but sighed in defeat. “Yes. So we’re taking him upstairs so he can rest.”

“Can I help?!” Delgado asked, running over to them and circling around. 

“Got all the paws I need, Delgado, thanks,” Dylan said, watching him.

“Yeah, get outta here, Micro Machine!” Dimirti 3 ordered. “We got it.”

“Aw, but I can help!” Delgado argued. “Why not use the lift, or the swing?” He scooted over to a blue swing installed in the house by Dawkins. It helped get Delgado up and down the stairs without having to be carried. Which the boy very much appreciated. 

“Dante can’t really keep himself from falling off, bud,” Dylan explained, “And that only sits two small pups, or one bigger one.” At the sight of Delgado withering, Dylan winced. “I mean, if you could bring up a bowl of water for him, just in case he needs it, that would help a lot!”

“I can do that!” Delgado said quickly, speeding off to the kitchen.

“Careful not to spill!” Dylan called after him, then started to slowly climb the stairs with a Dimirti on each side. He made it up a few steps before something clanged to the floor in the kitchen, followed by a splash of water.

“Opps.”

Dylan deflated. 

They soldiered on though, up the staircase to their parents room. It had once been the quarters for the help, in days long since passed. Now it was Doug and Delilah’s secluded alcove, with their large dog bed taking up most of the space. A few family pictures and odd decorations littered the walls. Light trickled in through a small circular window.

Dylan lay down and the 3 Dimitris lowered Dante onto the tempurpedic bed. Once finished they all stepped back, looking unsure what to do next. 

“Do we just, like, leave ‘em?” Dimitri 2 asked, looking at Dylan with a tinge of discomfort at the idea. 

“Well…” Dylan winced, scratching his neck uncertainty. “There’s not much else we can do but keep him comfortable till…” Dylan waved his paw over Dante’s form, expression tight. “THIS passes.”

“So what is-” Dimitri 1 copied Dylan’s paw waving. “All THIS?”

“We don’t know yet…”

“Then how do you know it’ll pass?” Dimitri 3 asked, brow raised.

“I-” Dylan huffed. “Just trust me, okay?! It’ll pass. I don’t know when, but it will pass.” He rubbed his face. “You can go back downstairs and play if you want.”

“If you say so…” Dimitri 3 frowned, but they made their way to the door.

“Feel better soon there, Dante!” Dimitri 1 shouted as they left.

Dylan sighed, sounding exhausted.

**You just make things worse and worse, don’t you?**

Wheels squeaked as Delgado came in, holding a bowl of water in his mouth. He placed it beside the bed, but it was only a third full. Delgado himself, meanwhile, was drenched.

Dylan stared at him, and the boy offered an apologetic shrug. “The swing kept moving and the water spilled out.”

“Is there water all over the place?” Dylan asked, looking stressed.

“Ugh.” Delgado winced. “I don’t think so-”

“AHHH!” 

There was a large crashing noise as the Dimitris tumbled down the stairs, likely slipping in some water. Dylan gasped, feet flailing before he ran out the door. “Oh my dog! Are you three okay?!”

Delgado grimaced. “Ah jeez, I didn’t mean to do that.” He seemed to think a moment before he looked over at Dante. He wheeled closer to sniff at him. “Dante?”

Dante stared at the wall, gaze never moving.

Delgado frowned, but wheeled around to pull a blanket over him. After tucking his big brother in Delgado sighed.

“I guess your, like, really sad?” He said, a bit confused. “I know how that feels sometimes… but it won’t be forever.”

Dante took a deep breath, nose whistling a bit upon exhale.

“Well.” Delgado cocked his head to the side. “I hope you feel better soon, ‘kay? I’ll bring you more water if you need it later.” He looked to the hall. “I’m gonna go see if the Dimitris are okay.”

Dante didn’t move.

Delgado wheeled from the room and Dante watched as the door closed behind them. He was alone again, and Dante was relieved. Having his family see him in such a miserable state made him feel like crap… 

However, being alone wasn’t making him feel better either.

**Nothing makes you happy, does it? You're never satisfied. You deserve to feel like this, you know. You're such a miserable thing, that's all you ever make anyone else feel. This is your punishment for being such a worthless tool your whole life.**

**You couldn’t apologize to Deepak. You got Diesel in trouble. You cost Dolly her skateboard. Your stressing Dylan out. You made your parents miss work.**

**And for what? What good have you ever done.**

**Useless dramatic bitch.**

**Dog, I hate you.**

**I hate being you.**

**I wish I could just stop being you!**

**I wish that truck had hit me!**

**It’d be over by now.**

Dante didn’t sleep, but he was lost in a thick mist of toxic thoughts. He just couldn’t understand why he was like this. Literally nothing had happened to warrant this. He felt like this for no reason! Why was he like this?!

**Mama’s boy.**

Downstairs he heard the pups run in for dinner like a herd of buffalo. Delilah was shouting over the noise to be heard. 

_ “Calm down! The food is almost ready! Dawkins, are you set?” _

_ “Yes, mum!” _

The pump wheezed to life with a musical flourish, spraying food out for the likely waiting pups. The sounds of multiple conversations turning to munching. Dante couldn’t recall when he had eaten last, but he found no hunger. 

**You're full of misery and shit.**

The light had dimmed in the room, shadows growing on the walls and the night almost upon them. As Dante listened to the feasting downstairs, his ears twitched when a new noise came from the door as it creaked open.

He didn’t look as someone came in the room, shutting the door behind them. They came closer, nails clicking on the old wooden floors. The figure stood over him, shuffling a bit.

“Dante…” Doug said softly, sitting down beside the bed. Dante could see his shadow on the wall, rubbing its other arm. “Spotty Dottie? Can you hear me?”

Dante didn’t move, his body still stripped of life.

Doug hung his head a bit, but stood to climb into bed with him, laying down behind him and pulling Dante closer

“Oh son, daddy’s so sorry. When I saw you just laying there on the floor, I just… I couldn’t take it.” He mumbled, sniffling a little. “Y-you just- you looked… it reminded me of her and how badly I failed her.” He sobbed tightly. “After she died and I found out how depressed she had been and for how long… I dunno. I dunno how I missed it.” He wiped his eyes with his free paw. “Then I got around to reading about it, and I found out it could be genetic and- I just- I got so scared that one day…” Doug choked tightly. “One day I may be too late again.”

Dante didn’t turn to look at him, but maybe his ear twitched as he listened.

Doug nuzzled the back of Dante’s head with his nose. “I needed a minute to collect myself. I walked in on one of my worst nightmares coming true, but I’m back now.” He said. “Dad’s back, and he’s learned from his mistakes. I’m gonna be here and I’m gonna help you. Everything is gonna be okay.” He kissed the back of Dante’s head. “I promise… I promise.”

Dante didn’t answer him, but as he listened to his father's soft, shaky breaths, he finally felt his eyes drift shut. Doug kept Dante at his side, holding his child like the only thing keeping him from floating away were his arms.

**Why does he care? He’s got at least forty other, better sons to worry about then some stupid-**

Doug gave him a slight squeeze, and Dante lost his train of thought for a moment.

The small reprieve from his dark thoughts was enough for Dante to usher forth some resistance. He gripped onto the dog bed with his front paws.

_ Shut up, my dad loves me.  _

Just thinking that hurt because he really did. Dad loves all his kids so much.

**Even me, for whatever reason.**

Doug nuzzled him again and Dante sighed softly. It was warm with dad here…

It had been more than twenty four hours, but Dante finally managed to fall asleep.

* * *

For the past few nights, Dante hadn’t slept well, and this night was no different. However, the reason before were the nightmares. Hellish nightmares of death and salt water. Grabby human hands and blood. Dark shipping containers, cramped vacuum traps and bald cats. One after another, one dream not quite the same as the last, but never so different as to be random.

Tonight, Dante wasn’t sure what it was. He wasn’t even sure how long he had slept. All he knew was he awoke before the sun was up, but late enough that both his parents were in bed.

He felt like he had just shut his eyes a few moments ago. He was still so tired.

His eyes drifted to the digital clock on the floor nearby. It was five in the morning, but he had been in bed around dinner time. That was almost twelve hours.

Why was he still so tired?

Dad, on one side of him, shifted with a sleepy snort. His paw still over Dante’s back, though the grip was far looser with him sound asleep. Mom was on his other side, having joined them at some point. She was also deep in sleep, one ear draped over her muzzle with the tip fluttering around her nose as she breathed. One of her paws was put over his.

**Aw crap…**

Dante couldn’t help a guilty wince. Memories coming back faster as the mist of slumber lifted from his mind. Dante took a breath, then with a huff, lifted his head up off the pillow. He was relieved, it was far, far easier than it had been yesterday. 

He licked his dry lips, likely from sleeping with his mouth open. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he looked over the room for the water Delgado had brought him, but it was gone. Mom had likely knocked into it when she came in.

As dry as his mouth was, Dante wasn’t really tempted to get out of bed for a drink. 

However, the need to use the bathroom, that did get him up.

Dante looked at his parents before slowly inching back out from under their paws. Mom’s were easy, she didn’t even move as he pulled his paws back. Dad on the other hand…

Doug mumbled when Dante moved, his arm slumbing off once Dante’s head was free. The pup sat up, though he was slouched and haggard. The hole in his chest had relinquished its hold on his body, but it was still buzzing erratically, clawing out and dripping. He still felt half full of dark water, limbs heavy, but he could manage this. It wasn’t like before.

With a bit of effort, he heaved himself to his paws and tip-toed around his parents legs. He opened the door as quietly as he could, slipping out into the hall without waking anyone up. He didn’t bother to shut the door behind him and looked wearily up and down the hall. He was still alone, and the house was quiet. Everyone was likely asleep. He caught sight of the bathroom at the end of the hall, but headed downstairs instead, to use the one in the laundry room. The washroom upstairs was too close to the puppies’ bedroom. With over fifty little ears, the flush of the toilet always woke somebody up, so it was pretty much an unwritten rule to go downstairs if you had to go at night.

Dante would stumble here and there. Taking the steps was difficult and felt like he ran down an equally fast, upwards-moving escalator. He managed to inch towards the ground floor, thankful to have all four paws on even flooring once more. He handled his business in the bathroom and washed his paws in the sink, making sure to lap up some water as he did so.

After that… Dante wasn’t sure what to do with himself. He didn’t want to go back upstairs. It took so much energy just going down. That meant going back up would be even worse. He still wasn’t hungry, he didn’t want to read or watch TV or… do anything.

He decided to stagger back to the main room and climb up on the couch. Then he just, sorta, lay there. Looking at the ceiling and the window…

Yeah.

**What the hell is wrong with you, lazy ass.**

“I dunno…” Dante sighed out loud in a tired way, rolling onto his back.

**You're a failure, can’t do a damn thing right.**

Dante rubbed his eyes, mumbling under his breath. He just wanted to sleep some more… why wasn’t it coming!?

“Good morning, Dante.”

Dante pulled his paws from his face and glanced over. Dawkins peering into the room with a raised brow.

“I’m just on my way to finish up those pipes downstairs,” he said, a wrench in his mouth. “More quiet when everyone is asleep, though I didn’t expect you to be up at this time of day. You're usually not awake till noon.”

Dante stared back at him.

Dawkins didn’t seem to expect a response either. He just shrugged and turned around.

“I’ll be downstairs if you'd like to help,” he mumbled, heading off. Distantly, Dante heard his brother grumble “Not that anyone wants to help usually.”

Dante groaned and whacked himself on the head. The basement! He wrecked the basement! Right! Another thing to add to the list, he needed to fix that… and Dolly’s board… and apologize to Deepak… and...

There was so much to do… Dante could almost feel his energy leaking out of his feet at the thought of doing them. Of doing anything. However he could hear clicking and grunting in the basement, so he forced himself back up and shambled to the door.

Ahhh, more stairs.

He made his way down lethargically. It wasn’t any easier this time around so he stopped halfway to survey the damage from yesterday. The pit he and Diesel had excavated was deeper than he remembered and Dawkins was using a step stool to reach the pipes. He seemed to be undoing some parts and taking them to the center of the room to repair. 

Dawkins noticed him again after a moment. “Oh! You're actually here!” he said, brow raised. 

Dante gave a quiet, tiny nod back to him.

“Well, come on down. If you're here to help, you can wipe off the pipes while I look for cracks. Sealing these up will be cheaper than buying new ones.” Dawkins gestured to a space next to him before he went back to work, checking the pipe in his paws for any holes.

Dante glanced at the stairs. He didn’t think he could take walking the rest of the way down, but…

Dante turned and pulled himself down with his upper legs, sliding down the steps on his belly. It was a sort of controlled movement and he managed to not ram his face into the dirt when he got to the bottom, so Dante counted it as a win.

Dawkins didn’t notice his antics on the steps, but did look up in momentary confusion when Dante sat down next to him. “You look like crap.”

“Yeah,” Dante managed to say, looking down at the pipes piled before him.

There were so many…

“I didn’t see you at dinner last night,” Dawkins continued, using his paw pad to feel for cracks. “Dylan said you had gone to bed and weren’t feeling well. At least you calmed down from that giddiness you had.”

Calmed down and just kept going down…

Shakily, Dante reached for a pipe and a rag, wiping down the metal and chewing on his lip. He was slow and sluggish, hardly even working.

“They figure out why you were acting like that?” Dawkins asked, not really looking at him. 

Not really. Dante put the metal pipe down to his other side and grabbed the next. He felt like his body creaked with each move he made.

“Maybe it was just a slight fever,” Dawkins suggested. “Changes in temperature can do crazy things to the mind.”

“Mmm,” Dante mumbled, taking the next pipe in his hands.

“Well, anyway, I’m glad you actually came to help, this mess you and Diesel made is just another job on my already long chores list.” Dawkins sighed. “At least Dylan is better than he used to be-” He freed his paws to clap them together. “Chop, chop! Honestly, he thinks  _ he’s _ busy! I keep this house functioning mechanically.” He paused to think a moment. “Course, Dolly and Dylan do their parts. Without them there'd be no civil discipline around here. All the pups would sit around the house, eating each other. Then Deepak and Da Vinci handle the spiritual balance, with art and meditation.” He sighed. “We have a very good system around here, if I do say so myself!”

Dawkins finished inspecting his pipe and put it down, grabbing one Dante had cleaned. “Well at any rate we would be done soon- ahhhh…” He frowned, sounding a bit irritated. “Dante, this really isn’t ‘clean’. You just rubbed all the grime around.”

Dante looked over at the pipe Dawkins held. True to what he said, it was more grit streaked than clean.

“It’s not really that hard, is it,” Dawkins said, shaking his head. 

“I’m trying…” Dante frowned at him.

“Not very much.” Dawkins said, putting the pipe back down. “Frankly, I dunno what you do all day besides your government mandated homeschooling. Seems to me like everyone else has found a job but you.”

As Dawkins grabbed a free cloth and started to rewash the pipe he had held, Dante couldn’t help but let his thoughts wander.

_ “So if ANYTHING is useless in this house! It's definitely not OUR CLASSES.” _

**_Deepak’s your little brother, and he’s doing WAY more for the family than you are._ **

Dante looked back down at the pipe he was working on, still dirt smeared. He tried a bit harder, but the weight of his own body fought against him.

**Try harder!**

So he did. He willed his arms to scrub a bit more quickly and a bit better than they already were. It seemed to work, the pipe was coming out shiny. That’s what Dawkins wanted, right?

He looked over at the one Dawkins was cleaning to compare.

Closer, but still not good enough.

Dante wasn’t sure why this was all so hard! He had slept for more than eight hours last night! He should be better! He’s not feeling dead inside anymore, or so happy it hurt! Why couldn’t he just do this?!

**Your best is just garbage.**

Dante tried to clean a bit harder, and the pipe started to look like Dawkins. Finally. As he wiped it down, he pressed a bit more around the middle-

Snap!

The middle of the pipe splintered, flaking as a large section of it just broke. It was bent downwards with a huge crack. Dante stared at it, eyes wide, and he heard Dawkins groan

“Oh damn it! I should have known…” His brother grumbled, snatching the pipe from Dante’s paws. The genius was mumbling to himself, looking it over, but Dante just dropped his cloth, staring at the far side of the room.

You broke it. You cost your family money. Now Dawkins is mad at you too!  **Why can’t you do ANYTHING RIGHT?!**

Dante clenched his paws and swallowed tightly. Dawkins murmurs became background noise because Dante had broken it! He broke it, and it was useless! He broke it! He broke it! He broke it and- and-!!

Dante’s throat tightened and twitch and then-

He sobbed, loudly. 

From there he spiraled into a wheezing, crying, teary, snotty mess.

He didn’t know why he was such a screw up.

“D-Dante!” Dawkins said, sounding flabbergasted. “Whoa! What's going on!?”

That was a fair question. Dante hadn’t cried in front of anyone since he was over seven or so and that just a little crying here and there. Not a full on bawling like it was now.

Dante could barely stop to answer. He snorted and snuffled and wiped at his eyes before croaking out “I broke it!” in a very small voice. He coughed a little and sobbed some more. “I broke it, and you're mad!”

“What- I’m- I’m not mad!” Dawkins said quickly, running a paw over his head. “I meant I should have known I couldn’t reuse some of them! I’m not mad at you!”

Dante was not convinced or maybe he didn’t even fully understand Dawkins over his crying. “I c- I can’t do anything RIGHT!”

“What?!” Dawkins asked, completely lost on how he got here or what to do next.

Dante didn’t answer, he just kept on crying. Dawkins scooted closer, hesitantly reaching out to try and pat him on the shoulder, only to pull back uncertainty. He tried again, but still pulled back, unsure if this was the correct action to take.

“Oh dog, this isn’t my area of expertise!” Dawkins whimpered, pulling on his ears a little. “Please! Dante! It’s okay, just calm down for a moment!”

“I’m useless!” Dante sobbed and snorted. He threw his paw up in the air and wept thickly. “Why was I even born!”

Dawkins' head was practically buried between his shoulders, eyes like plates and his mouth hung open. His brain offered no solutions to what was going on before him. He waved his paws around before he simply ran upstairs, frantically.

Dante didn’t really notice nor did he calm down. In fact, his crying got worse.

“Why did you have him helping you?!” Dylan asked, his voice drifting down the stairs before they even got to the basement. “I said he wasn’t feeling well-”

“He looked better before! Besides, you failed to mention he was mentally falling apart!”

“You saw him!”

“I thought that was over!”

“Guys!” Dolly spoke as they crested the basement steps. “Calm down!”

“Make Dante calm down!” Dawkins whined, gesturing to Dante in a panic. “I don’t know what to do!”

Dolly and Dylan hurried down the steps while Dawkins stayed hunched on the upper landing, too frightened to follow them. Dante didn’t turn to face them, a little embarrassed but mostly just miserable, however he could still tell that even Dolly and Dylan were a bit lost on how to proceed. 

“Heeeyyyyy, buddy. What’s got you all down in sad town?” Dylan said, coming forth first to pat his back lightly.

“Dylan! Don’t treat him like one of the littler pups!” Dolly hissed tightly. 

Dylan had the decency to wince. “Sorry! Sorry… I’m used to the younger pups… ugh… crying!”

**You're nothing but a big baby.**

“Come on, dude, up and at ‘em.” Dolly sighed, pulling him to his paws. “Let’s take this outside and get you some air.”

Dolly lead her soggy brother towards the stairs, Dylan following close behind. They squeezed Dante between them and went up the steps, passing a nervous looking Dawkins as they went.

They shuffled quickly into the backyard, depositing Dante by the wall in case any of the pups looked out the window. Dylan paced, chewing on his lip.

“Ahhhh,” he whined, watching Dante cry. “I- I don’t know what's going on Dolly! I’ve never seen him like this!”

“Chill, Dyl, it’s gonna be fine,” Dolly said, looking unsettled but determined. “Everybody has down days…”

“Not like this! Not so up and down and-” Dylan ran a paw over his face frantically. “I was hoping a good night’s sleep would help…”

“I think it did,” Dolly admitted with a shrug. “I mean, crying is better than looking like a vegetable.” She patted Dante on the shoulder before she spoke again. “Go see what Mom and Dad are doing. They wanted to take him to the doctor, now that he can walk and talk again, it might be time for an appointment.”

“That’s a good idea…” Dylan sighed, going for the door. “Can you stay with him while I’m gone?”

“Where else would I go right now?” Dolly asked, raising a brow.

“Good point,” Dylan muttered before going back into the house.

Dante choked a bit on a weeping noise, scrubbing his eyes.

“Shit. Shit!” He warbled out between sobs.

“I know,” Dolly said, rubbing his back. “Just let it out, I think it's been building a while.”

“Why though!” Dante snapped wetly. “Everything has been good! I’ve been doing fine before now!”

“Dante, you tend to do more bottling than a soda pop factory,” Dolly said, shaking her head. “Besides, it's a rough patch, it’ll pass.”

Dante sucked in a deep breath, finally starting to pitter out, though the tears kept coming. “I’m just so tired, Dolly… Why am I so tired?! I slept for so long!”

“Your brain is kicking it’s own ass, Dante. You're gonna be sore and tired.” Dolly huffed, putting her arm around his shoulders. “And you're gonna be mopey, and you're gonna feel crappy, but it’ll be okay. It's like having a cold, it hits hard and slowly goes away.”

“What if it happens again!?”

“It could. I mean, it’s not like you can never get another cold again, it’s just a part of life,” Dolly said. “Being brain sick is the same way, it’s just harder to help.”

Dante snuffled. “Dolly. I don’t want to end up like her.”

“What?!” Dolly looked shocked. “You're not! Who said you were?!”

“...Dad’s worried…”

“Pft-well-!” Dolly seemed irritated. “It's not gonna go down like that!  You give a shit!”

Dante paused. “Dolly, I think she did too…”

“Yeah, well.” Dolly looked away sourly. “If she did, she shouldn’t’ve bailed.”

Mmmmmm.

Dolly rubbed her face, eyes scrunched shut, then she turned back with a sigh. “Look, just don’t think about that, okay? You're gonna be fine, you’re gonna get some help, end of story.”

Dante snorted one last time before mumbling. “I guess…I just wish I could stop feeling so crappy.”

**You can’t do anything else but whine can you.**

“Just- Just do what you can, Dante,” Dolly said firmly. “You can’t do anything more.”

Dante looked at her, mulling over what she said. It was the truth. After all, how was he supposed to do anything beyond his own power? He couldn’t control getting sick.

But... 

The two sat for a moment before the back door opened. Delilah came out, shaking off the last dredges of sleep.

“What’s all this then?” She asked, yawning a little. “Dylan said Dante was up and about again.”

“Yeah, he’s just… letting off some steam,” Dolly said, stepping away from him.

Delilah was confused, until she looked at Dante’s red, worried eyes.

“Oh love, come here.” She pulled him into a hug, which Dante returned after a few seconds. “Everything will be fine.”

Dante squeezed her back and nodded quietly, sniffling tightly.

“Oh, love,” Delilah hummed. “We made an appointment at the psychiatrist’s office for this morning, but if your not feeling up to it we can cancel-”

“No,” Dante said, voice raspy from crying. “I...I wanna go.”

“Are you sure?” Delilah asked, still a touch concerned. Dante nodded quickly and she relented. “Alright, but only if you're sure, dear.” 

Dante snuffled out a “Thanks, mom,” and Delilah just patted him on the head in response.

Dante couldn’t control getting sick.

But maybe he could control getting better.

* * *

  
  


Doug and Delilah had Dante at the front door once they had their morning coffee. The black pup lethargically toddled down the steps as slow as a snail, feeling his family’s eyes on him the whole time. He was already worn out. How the hell was he gonna make it all the way down to the doctor’s office?!

**Lazy, good for nothing. You give up before you even try.**

Dante stopped a moment to think that thought over, then turned around. Mom and Dad were looking at each other, worriedly. Dolly, Dylan, and Dawkins just joined them on the porch.

“Ah son,” Doug started, looking uncertain. “Are you sure you're okay? We can reschedule.”

Dog, did that sound tempting, but he needed to go to this appointment.

He just… HE NEEDED TO.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just really tired,” Dante explained. He bit his lip, grateful once again that the darkness of his fur hid his reddening skin before asking. “W-would you mind carrying me?”

**You useless bag of-**

Doug perked up and his tail wagged a little. “Sure!” He scuttled down the steps and lay down for Dante to pull himself on. With a little effort, Dante made his way up, resting on his dad’s back, holding on as he stood again. “There we go!”

Dante let out a breath of relief, happy to be off the ground again. He chanced a glance at his siblings, thankful they weren’t chuckling behind their paws at the sight of him. Instead of that, however, they seemed just as relieved as he was.

“We’ll see you when you get back,” Dylan said, gesturing to Dolly and Dawkins as he spoke.

“Make sure everyone gets their breakfast and routine check up,” Delilah said, making her way down the steps. “Donburi, Donut, and Disco need their insulin checked and then-”

“Mom, I think we know how to do the morning routine by now,” Dolly jokes with a shrug. “We can handle the house till you get back.”

“Mmm, I suppose,” Delilah admitted.

“Best of luck, Dante,” Dawkins said, looking uncertain.

“Thanks.” Dante sighed from his dad’s back, lying over him tiredly.

“Ah, he doesn't need luck!” Doug said quickly. “Everything is gonna be fine!”

“Ta-ra!” Delilah smiled and they started down the street.

It wasn’t too far a walk to the psychiatrist’s office, only a few blocks really. It was just the longer they went, the more Dante felt embarrassed that he was being carried around like a toddler. Thankfully, it seemed to be mostly humans in the streets. Many were on their phones or couldn’t really tell the age of a dog by looking at them. Dante was just another puppy being carried around by his parents.

Doug hummed in a jittery fashion as they walked, Delilah leading the way. They came to the cross walk before the street they needed, stopping to wait for the light to change. Doug glanced back at Dante. “You good, bud?”

“Hanging in there,” Dante responded, giving a weak smile. 

“Good, we’re almost there!”

Doug looked back at the street, it wouldn’t be much longer till the light changed.

“Having a little ride, are we?”

Dante winced, looking down at the ground to fine Prunella and Arabella, chortling under their breath. Prunella’s human housekeeper was behind them, arms full of groceries. 

“Aren’t you a bit old for that?” Prunella snorted out a chuckle.

Oh crap. Dante looked away quickly, holding a tight frown. He heard Delilah growl deep in her throat, though Doug tried to calm her.

“Ignore ‘em,” he said to her softly. “They just want a reaction.”

“I’ll give ‘em a reaction,” Delilah muttered back.

The light changed and the crosswalk beeped loudly. The Dalmatians hurried across the way to get as far from the two as possible. They could still be heard laughing when they got to the other side. Dante sighed, looking up to see a human crossing from the other side with a tray of ice coffee. He caught Dante’s stare, and they seemed to eye each other, though for no other reason then the eye contact. Dante broke it first, and the human man kept walking, staring back at the strange pup for a few moments.

“Grinds my gears,” Delilah growled.

“I know, honey, but there is nothing we can do, other than get in a huge fight with them and be late for the appointment,” Doug said, leaning in to nuzzle her neck with his nose..

“Mm, true. Dr. Spaniel is opening up early just for us. We shouldn’t keep him,” Delilah agreed. “But still-”

“AHHH!”

The Dalmatian family stopped to look back at the noise. Prunella and Arabella were dripping wet, the human from before having accidentally spilled his tray of iced coffees all over them. Prunella jumped around, absolutely livid. “Look what you did! Watch where you're going, you overgrown ape!”

The human held up his hands, looking shocked and apologized excessively, though the Dalmatians didn’t stay to watch long. A few minutes away, Doug snorted out his nose.

“Maybe Deepak’s onto something with that Karma stuff.”

Delilah threw her head back and laughed. Dante couldn’t help but smile as well.

Dr. Spaniel’s office was a converted old house just past the park. Delilah knew the way by heart, as Dr. Spaniel had been her own psychiatrist to help her with her guilt after her old boyfriend, Dash, had died. He had also seen Dylan, Dawkins, and Da Vinci to help them through mourning and had been on the forefront of the family’s every mental misstep, helping them through it all. In recent days, he had helped out with the DeVil incident by suggesting therapeutic group activities, so all 101 of them wouldn’t have to come to him for one on one appointments. Dr. Spaniel had done a lot for the Dalmatian family. 

They let themselves in the front door. Dante smelled calming vanilla and cinnamon, and everything was a clean white, with a few coloured accents. Where the old house’s living room had once been was now the waiting area, with the dining room acting as the office. Just as they entered the waiting area, Dr. Spaniel opened the sliding door to his office.

“Oi! Who let you lot in here?!” He asked. 

“Dr. Spaniel, I’ve been seeing you for almost fifteen years!” Delilah chuckled, coming in to give the shorter dog a quick hug. “Will you ever stop asking that?”

“Once I figure out how you keep getting in, I will,” Dr. Spaniel laughed loudly. “Oh, it’s good to see you, Delilah. How have you been feeling these last few weeks?”

“Everyone seems to be getting better. Myself included.” Delilah smiled. “The pups are much calmer now with your suggested therapeutic group activities. The feeling circle really helped, and I think Deepak is making it a permanent activity now.”

“Wonderful! I’m so glad to hear it!” Dr. Spaniel said. When Delilah moved aside, he barked. “Doug! Welcome!” 

Doug offered the doctor a grin. “It’s been too long!”

“Not long enough for my profession!” Dr. Spaniel joked. “Not that I can complain! You just paid off my new jacuzzi tub!”

Doug howled loudly with laughter. “Then you’ll have to let me try it!”

“I suppose you could try. Trouble is the jacuzzi tubs they make for small dogs are more like a big, fancy bidet! You can still try if you want though!”

“I think I’d get stuck!”

They both chuckled again before Dr Spaniel decided to greet his last guest.

“Ah, Dante!” He said, looking up at the boy. “Arriving in style, eh? Good to see you!”

“Yeah.” Dante nodded. He didn’t know Dr Spaniel very well. The only psychiatrist he could recall seeing was Dr. Wolfhound back in the states, but she had been more gentle and calm, whereas Dr Spaniel liked to make others laugh.

“Well, you all let yourselves in, come make yourselves at home!” He led them into his office. It was a lovely space with a running fountain in the corner. It was designed in a white and grey colour scheme, with a few blue accents here and there. He had a couch and chair here, but he took them to his short desk, having them sit on some plush pillows near the front. Dante took the moment to climb off his dad’s back and onto his own pillow. Dr. Spaniel opened up his laptop before turning to them. “So what can I help you with today?”

“Well, it’s Dante, you see, Dr. Spaniel,” Delilah explained. “He’s been behaving oddly for the last two or so days.“ She glanced at her son, wondering if he wanted to speak, but he just nodded to her to continue. “Well, he’s had issues with his emotions- and it’s not anything like being too angry or too sad, it’s just… he’s been bouncing very rapidly between extremes.”

“Extremes? How so do you mean?”

“Well, my son, Dylan, noticed first. He told me that Dante had acted so oddly the first time Hunter DeVil returned. He said Dante was happy, and it was like he was so happy it pained him. He wasn’t thinking straight, and he ran right out into Hunter’s arms.”

Dante nodded again, frowning.

“He was back to normal very quickly then, but it happened again yesterday, lasting hours.” Delilah paused to glance back to Dante. “Do you know when it started, dear?”

Dante thought for a moment. “Ah… Late at night. Sometime before two in the morning…”

“Well no wonder you slept so long, love,” Delilah said, stroking his head.

“How long were you feeling happy for?” Dr. Spaniel asked, typing away into his laptop.

“He was like that quite a while, I think. Dylan noticed around noon or so at the park. Dante dug out the basement with his brother in the time before and almost ran into traffic while playing fetch with his sisters.”

“Did you do anything else in that state, Dante?” Dr. Spaniel asked, looking at the boy.

“Stupid stuff. Useless stuff.” Dante shrugged. “I drew up plans for an underground bunker - that’s why the basement’s a mess - and I made breakfast.”

“They were quite detailed plans, Dante,” Delilah said with a smile. “And a very nice thought.” She looked back at the doctor. “He made a room for everyone.”

“Very detailed plans then, I suppose?” Dr Spaniel nodded. “And after that?”

“They got back from the park, and Dylan said Dante came back down after a bit,” Delilah said, shaking her head. “Then he was left alone and he just… shut down?”

“What do you mean when you say he shut down?”

“When I got home, he was completely unresponsive,” Delilah said, looking to Dante again. “You could lift him up, and he’d flop like an old toy. He didn’t say anything, he didn’t move, didn’t speak. He just stared and looked miserable.”

“And how were you feeling when that was happening, Dante?” The doctor asked, pausing his typing.

“I didn’t really feel anything…” Dante said. “I was just tired and empty… I mean, I was still thinking, just not nice stuff.”

“Anything in particular you were thinking about?”

“Just about me,” Dante sighed, grimacing a bit when his dad patted him on the back.

“I see, and I’m supposin’ you came out of that this morning then?” He said, typing again. “Were there any changes before this happened? Food? Bo Peep schedule?”

“Bo Peep schedule?” Dante squinted at him.

“He means if anything changed when you slept, Dante,” Delilah explained. “Were you sleeping longer? Shorter? Anything?”

“Well…” Dante frowned. “I had some pretty bad nights since, well, you know. I wasn’t sleeping very much, it was hard to fall asleep first, and then I had some pretty dark nightmares, so…”

“Nightmares. Possible insomnia. Empty feelin’,” Dr Spaniel mumbled as he typed. He hummed a moment, then turned to the family again. “So Dante, when you were happy, did you feel invincible?”

“At one point, maybe?” Dante said, thinking back. “It’s kinda blurry.”

“Alright, an' when you were sad, did you 'have feelings of worthlessness or excessive self deprivation or guilt'?” 

“...kinda.” Dante mumbled.

“Mmm. Seems like a pretty open-shut case then!” Dr Spaniel nodded. “I think I have an idea as to what this is!”

“You know already?” Delilah asked, shocked. “How can you be so sure?”

“You doubt my skills?” He asked jokingly. However, he returned to a more professional tone afterwards. “Well, I’m pretty sure I know what's going on, but it's always a good idea to get a second opinion, I can suggest some colleagues who can do that. Till then, I can prescribe some medication while you set up those appointments,” Dr Spaniel explained.

He leaned over his desk. “As for what Dante has, it's my personal medical diagnoses that he is currently sufferin’ from-”

* * *

  
  


“Manic Depressive Bi-Polar Disorder?!”

Dolly and Dylan spoke as one, heads shoved together and making the same shocked expression. Dante sighed as his father put him back down on the ground. He was happy to be back home at least.

Though he’d rather not have this conversation out on the front stoop, he also really didn’t want any of the younger pups to hear about this until he had all the details himself. Dolly and Dylan seemed to have a hard time understanding themselves.

“So what does that mean?!” Dolly asked. “Are you- What does- What do we do now?!”

“Settle down now,” Delilah said. “It doesn't mean much outside a diagnosis. Dr. Spaniel suggests getting a few other opinions from other doctors, but he seems pretty sure.”

“Okay, but what do we do?!” Dylan asked frantically. “Does he have to get surgery!? Counselling?!” 

“Dr. Spaniel suggested some medication. Mood stabilizers, a basic Antidepressant-antipsychotic pill mixture, and some anxiety medication. We’ve already sent in the prescription with the phone app. Some will be ready today, others will take a few days to arrive,” Delilah explained, checking her phone. “Outside that, we’re going to have him checking in with Dr. Spaniel every month, he’s going to see some other doctors as well, and he needs to chart his moods and sleep schedule with this notebook.” She gestured to Doug, who held up a dollar store bag they had likely picked up on the way home. She eyed the two closely, making Dolly and Dylan sweat slightly. “A PRIVATE notebook.”

“Okay,” Dolly said, Dylan nodding next to her.

“So how did he get this?” Dylan asked.

“Likely genetic,” Delilah said with a wince, which everyone seemed to share. “Dr. Spaniel says that it’s not necessarily what, ah, Darling had, but mental illnesses like depression or other similar illnesses in the family tree can lead to this as well. He also believes some of the stress from recent days could have triggered an attack, it's just taken a while to cook up.”

“The good news is we’re on our way to understanding what this is and how to work with it!” Doug said, hugging Dante to his chest, the boy making a muffled squawking noise. “Everything is gonna be fine, we just need to find a medication system that works for Dante and keep an eye out for any changes in mood!”

“Just another adventure,” Dante wheezed under his dad’s arm.

“That's the spirit!” Doug smiled, letting him go.

“How are you feeling?” Dylan asked his brother, a bit concerned. “You must be… happy to find out what was happening?”

“I’m… okay. I’m glad we know what it is and that there's medication for it.” Dante sighed. “I dunno what else the pills will do, but I guess we’ll find out… So long as they do what they need to.”

“It won’t be bad, dear,” Delilah assured him. “We’ll take it one step at a time!”

“I guess there’s not much of a choice,” Dante agreed. “Other than that, I’m just tired.”

“Go upstairs and take a nap then,” Delilah suggested, petting his head. “It’ll be lunch in an hour or so. I think your father and I are going to give Dolly and Dylan a day off, so we can take the pups to the park and give you all some quiet.”

Dolly and Dylan immediately perked up. “Really?!”

“Yup, have fun!” Delilah chuckled, heading in. “I’ll get started on the food.”

“And I’ll pack some toys for the park!” Doug added, following her. He gave each of the three pups a quick kiss on the head as he went. “Enjoy your day, sweetie pies!”

“Dad!” Dylan chuckled, rubbing the spot his father kissed with false irritation.

“He wears you down,” Dolly snorted in amusement.

Dante grunted, standing up. “I should help out more with the basement before that.”

“Already done!” Dylan said, waving a dismissive paw. “Dawkins and I tackled the pipes, then Diesel filled that thing faster than I even thought possible!”

“Oh. Sorry. I should have helped him out.” Dante grimaced. 

“Nah, Diesel said filling the hole back up was half the fun of digging.” Dolly chuckled. “I think he was just happy to spend some quality time with you.”

“We didn’t even talk, he just dug a huge hole with me nearby.” Dante frowned a little.

“Yeah, that’s quality time to Diesel!” Dolly shrugged. “He seemed happy anyway!”

“Look, don’t worry about anything!” Dylan nodded, opening the doggy door. “Just head in and take a nap- I know I’m going to!”

They came inside quietly and Dante could hear puppies giggling and playing in every corner of the house. A group ran past in the living room, and Dante looked in to see some Pups having another Feelings Circle. Deepak was at the center, with the pups passing around a talking stick, taking their turn expressing their feelings to the other family members.

“Sister Desiree, we do not chew on the talking stick,” Deepak explained calmly when a pup couldn’t help themselves. 

“But I feel like chewin’!” The pup said, yet she passed the stick along anyway to Diana on her other side. 

Deepak gave a good natured chortle at her words, but paused when he spotted Dante watching them. He instantly perked up, but turned to his class. “Ah- Excuse me a moment, Sister Diana! I must- ah- go use the restroom. Keep going while I’m gone, I will return momentarily!”

He hurried out of the living room as quick as his stubby legs could go.

“Your back!” Deepak smiled brightly, dashing up to hug Dante tightly. “Your aura is so much better! Do you feel better?!” 

“A little,” Dante said, but hugged his brother back. At the sight of Deepak, Dante recalled another thing he needed to do, from the very long list of things he needed to do. “Listen, I’m sorry about yesterday and-”

“No, brother!” Deepak jammed his two front paws into Dante’s mouth, much to the elder’s confusion. “That wasn’t your fault.” Deepak drew back with a saddened sigh. “I was also tired. I’ve been working too much since the whole ‘incident’ a few weeks back. I wasn’t sleeping, and I was doing three or four classes a day! I got irritable, and I took it out on you. I’m sorry.”

Dante blinked, a bit bewildered that this was how the situation worked out, but glancing at Dylan the older boy just offered him a sad smile.

Best to just roll with it, Dante supposed.

“It’s okay. We were both not ourselves,” Dante said. 

“I’m glad we worked this out!” Deepak spoke, sounding relieved. “I plan on cutting down on my classes for now. Domino has started a board game night, and I plan to attend, try to work out some of this stress in a new way!” He looked up at Dante imploringly. “Would you like to join me?”

“Well, maybe not tonight,” Dante said, sleep tugging at the back of his eyes. However, when he watched Deepak’s smile drop a little, he quickly added. “I’m just really drained from the last few days. Maybe next time?”

Deepak jumped slightly. “Of course! However, you are missing out! It's going to be a Battleship tournament today after dinner!”

“Are there enough game sets for that?” Dante asked, surprised.

“We’re doing an online game play!” Deepak laughed. “I don’t know if we have all the game pieces left in any of our physical copies, of any of our board games really!” Deepak bounced again. “Everyone will be so glad to see you next time however!”

“I doubt that.” Dante shrugged. “I’m just kind of a ghost around here-”

“That’s not true in the slightest!” Deepak said. “Everyone was worried when you were missing at breakfast and dinner last night! In fact, I can prove it right now!”

“Can you?” Dante asked sarcastically.

Deepak just offered him a quirked brow and a very smug look.

“You doubt me, brother? You sure you want to do that?”

Dante just offered him a confused look in return.

“Very well then!” Deepak turned and took a very, very, very deep inhale of breath before screaming.

“DANTE’S HOME!”

The house fell silent, and all movement around them stopped. Like an eerie calm before the storm, then a small voice piped up from the second floor.

“Dante’s home?!”

Another squeaky voice came from the kitchen. 

“Dante’s home?!”

A large chorus of little voices roared. 

“DANTE’S HOME!!!!!!!”

Like a calvary of horses freed from a corral, pups rushed in from all directions. The stairs, the living room, the basement, the yard, maybe even the sky. One minute, Dante was standing in the hall, the next he was buried alive under an avalanche of moving, squirming siblings dog piling on top of him. Some one’s foot was in his eye, an elbow was jammed in his back. One of them was wet for some reason, and was dripping on him. He jerked when Dorothy bit him on the tail again.

“Dante!”

“You’re back!”

“Welcome home!”

Dante twitched when a wagging tail wapped him on the side of the head, but he couldn’t help a genuine chuckle.

“Alright, get off me!” He said with a twinge of amusement.

“No!” one whined

“Play with us!”

“We want you to play with us, Dante!”

“Ppppplllleeeeaaasssseee!!” Dizzy and Dee Dee’s voices rang out as one.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Dylan scolded softly from beyond the wall of spots. “Dante was just going to have a quick nap, so he can’t play right-”

“I can nap!” A puppy said.

“Yeah, lets go have a quick nap!”

“Nap! Nap! Nap!”

Dolly snorted over the chorus of small voices. “First time that was a trigger word.”

“Let’s go have a nap, Dante!”

“Uh, okay?” Dante blinked. “I guess we could- WHOA!”

Dante was lifted up to the top of the pile, popping up like a daisy. The herd carted him up the stairs like he was crowd surfing.

Dolly laughed at the bottom of the stairs with Deepak and Dylan still at her sides. “Aw man! When’s my turn?!”

Dante gave a good natured groan. Seems like the puppies were excited and getting carried away again.

Man, did he love this family.

They took him to the bedroom and popped him carefully on the ground.

“Where do you want to sleep?!” a pup asked.

“Well-”

“You can sleep in my bed!” Dallas offered from her drawer. “I mean, just THIS once.”

“No fair! I want him to sleep in my bed!” Deja Vu whined, poking out from her own.

“These are a little small for me,” Dante interjected quickly before the two could start arguing. “Thanks though.”

“You can try ours, Dante!” Dizzy and Dee Dee pointed to their shelf space.

“Or mine!” Delgado zoomed over to his ramped cupboard bed.

“I just like the floor,” Dante admitted, looking at the sea of puppies around him.

“Okay!” a pup said, pulling on his fur. “I want to sleep next to you!”

“I do too!” Another pup said urgently.

“Me too!”

“Me!”

“Alright- I mean!” Dante looked weary, not wanting them to squabble. “We could all just… be on the floor together?”

“OKAY!”

Everyone pulled together blankets and pillows. Dante flopped down with a sigh, happy to be back in bed. Just going out and getting those chores done was tiring. 

But they were still done. Dante couldn’t help a sense of accomplishment.

“Hey, Dante,” Dee Dee spoke suddenly, on his left side.

“Yeah?” He asked.

“Were you sick?” she asked, blinking. “Dylan said you missed meals cause you didn’t feel well.”

Dante frowned, not sure how much to tell them, but decided that the basics couldn’t hurt really. “Yeah, I’m still not all better yet, but… I will be.”

“How do you know?” Dizzy asked, looking concerned.

“Well, I’m gonna do everything I can to get better.” Dante smiled.

“Like take yucky medicine?” Dee Dee asked.

“And staying in bed when you have to?” Dizzy added.

“Yup.” 

“Ugh!” They both made a face.

“How can you stand it?!” Dizzy asked. “Sounds horrible!”

“Well, getting better isn’t always fun, but you do what you gotta do,” Dante said. “Staying sick, that's not much fun either.”

“When will you be all better?” Dee Dee asked.

“I-I don’t think I’ll be better. I think I just gotta manage it,” Dante said, wincing at the thought.

“Like me!” A tiny paw rose from the piled pups. It was Disco.

“And me!” Donut added from an area around his head.

Hm. Dante supposed they had a point. Managing a mental illness wasn’t very different than managing diabetes. It wasn’t something to be ashamed of.

“Yeah, kinda,” Dante agreed. “I just need to stay on track with managing it…” He frowned at the thought. “I’m not sure if I can do it,” he admitted, withering.

“Mommy and Daddy help us!” Donut said. “They’ll help you too!”

“We can help as well!” Dante jumped when Diesel appeared on his other side. “Sometimes I can smell when someone gets sick! Maybe I can do that with you! I just need to figure out the scent!”

“I don’t know if you can smell this,” Dante said.

“I could smell when the puppy at the play park had his seizure!” Diesel spoke. “Remember that?”

“Huh, yeah I do.” Diesel had run under the boy before he fell off the edge of the play structure, cushioning the fall.

“Well, either way, we can try!” Diesel said happily. All the puppies cheering in agreement. Dante puffed his cheek out before smiling a little. Wasn’t that true?

All anyone could do was try.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup. Dante has Bipolar Disorder! Bipolar Disorder is a mental health condition that causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).Now it should be noted that some symptom in the story are a bit more rushed than they might be in real life, though some people with Biploar disorder do have quick turn arounds. So take it with a grain of salt! (This story was actually influenced by a King Of The Hill episode, where I initially learned about Bi-polar Disorder!)
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading guys! I love doing stories like these. More to come in the future! 
> 
> Special thanks to my Beta Superdale 33!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope to depict this as properly as possible! I'll have a full explanation at the end of the story...
> 
> Special thanks to my Beta Superdale 33!


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